


Dark Prince

by DiscreetKitty



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-31
Updated: 2018-03-12
Packaged: 2019-02-27 10:00:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 30,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13245852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DiscreetKitty/pseuds/DiscreetKitty
Summary: Set in S5. Dark Hook kidnaps Henry and wants to force the teen to use the Author's pen to give the pirate control over the dark ones. Now Henry is struggling to choose between saving himself by becoming evil or saving the town by sacrificing himself for good.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon A Time, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Henry sat at his desk, holding a cup of hot chocolate between his hands. He sighed as he looked over the stories of his grandparents' adventures in the Enchanted Forest. When he was younger, looking at these stories would bring him some comfort. Now, he was noticing a common theme in all of the stories in the book - you cannot have it all. His grandmother, Snow, was able to be with her true love but she couldn't rule her kingdom. His mother, Regina, was the sole ruler of a land but her first true love was taken from her. His other mother, Emma, could save every single person in Storybrooke yet no one was able to save her from her darkness. Henry learned that "happy endings" didn't mean that a person received everything he or she wanted. Happy endings were simply having enough of something to maintain happiness.

"I guess I should be happy that I have one good mother left," Henry said to himself as he felt a slight breeze on the back of his neck.

Startled, he set his cup down, stood up and turned around as a tiny, gray tornado appeared in his room. He shook his head as a dark figure emerged from the gray smoke-like funnel. A white-haired woman in a long-tailed black leather jacket appeared as the swirling cloud dissipated. She stared at Henry as she took a step closer to him, opening her arms and motioning for him to accept her embrace. He watched as she quickly put her arms back at her side. She must have realized that he wasn't in the mood for hugs and kisses.

"Kid, Hook told me -" she begun until Henry interrupted her.

"Look, mom, I really can't-" he started to say.

He needed to tell her that he loved her but he just couldn't handle having an evil mother again. For years, Regina had treated everyone in town like second class citizens, pushing them over and making everyone see her as an evil queen. She even convinced Henry that he was overly imaginative, incapable of knowing the difference between real life and fantasy. Once Henry broke the curse, found his father, and was kidnapped by Peter Pan, Regina had changed into the loving mother who had become a role model to Henry. That process took many years, too many for Henry to have to repeat with his other mother. Yes, he had faith that Savior Emma was still in the Dark Swan, but she needed to understand that it was going to take some time for him to forgive her for ripping out Violet's heart.

"Henry, you need to listen to me. Hook's also the dark one."

"How?"

_Hook was evil now, too?_ Henry thought.  _This was not good Not good at all._

Henry was losing some of the most important people in his life. Who was next? Grandma and Grandpa Charming? Robinhood? Regina again? Henry rubbed his temples as he contemplated how much more would he have to lose before the heroes saved the day again.

"I'll tell you later, but I'm worried he might -" Emma started to say and then stopped.

Silence. Henry wasn't sure why she just stopped talking. Something must have happened between Emma and Hook. Did he hurt her? Henry scanned her face and tried to think of what Hook could have done to upset the Dark Swan. Maybe there were still good parts in her. His mother was still there. He couldn't give up.

He took a step closer to her as he asked, "He might hurt me?" He watched the way Emma nodded and he knew that this wasn't about him, it was about her. Even if it wasn't, there wasn't any reason why Dark Hook would want revenge against him. In fact, Hook was rather fond of Henry. There was the time when the two worked together to free Zelena so that she could use magic to open the portal to Camelot. Yes, Hook persuaded him to go behind his mothers' backs but Hook had the right intention. Or all the times that Hook leaned in close to Henry and whispered a suggestion on how to woo Violet. Henry concluded that Emma was just overreacting since Hook would never hurt him. Then again, he thought his mom would never hurt him either.

"You're afraid that he would take his anger out on me?" he asked, taking one more step closer to the sad woman. "Mom, what happened? Are you okay? Is Hook going to tell me something that further ruins our relationship?"

"Worse," she said. "He told me that as long as he gets what he wants, he doesn't give a damn about the rest."

Henry sighed in relief when he realized that this had to be a couples' issue. His mom and Hook had a fight and she came to visit Henry afterward. That would explain why she was upset but it didn't explain why she was worried about Henry's safety. He wasn't sure what he should believe at this moment. The only thing he knew for sure was that he had a better chance against an evil Hook than to trust Emma again. After all, Hook was a pirate and he used to have evil tendencies. Henry knew that Dark Hook couldn't be worse than pirate Hook.

"Sounds like typical villain mantras," Henry deducted.

"Henry, I'm serious," she exclaimed. She stepped close enough to ruffle his hair or place a hand on his shoulder, yet she stayed still. " He's so mad at me right now that he'll hurt you to hurt me. Maybe you should stay with me so -"

"My other mom can protect me just as well."

Henry's eyes widened when he saw Emma shuddered. He could see it in her eyes that she knew she had lost him. She was vulnerable as the Dark Swan. He started to raise his arms up to pull her close, to tell her that good prevails over evil and that he would find a way to save her and Hook. He opened his mouth to say something then immediately closed it. She rarely showed any signs of weakness when she was the savior. It had to be a ruse. He could tell Emma was studying him by the way her blue eyes scanned his face. She was trying to guess what he was thinking. Or maybe she wanted to see if he was buying her act. She cupped her hands on his cheek, making him flinch from the coldness of her pale hands.

"I want you to know that everything I did," Emma started to say, lowering her voice with each word. "No matter how wrong, was to help you."

"Ripping out Violet's heart and making her reject me did a lot of good."

"Henry, I," she started to say but closed her eyes and sighed. She removed her hands from his face, shook her head, took a step away and said softly, "Just promise me you'll stay away from Hook."

Before Henry could respond, she was gone and the remnants of a gray fog were all that was left. He placed a hand on his forehead and sighed. He yearned for the old days when things like Operation Cobra didn't take such a toll on him. The stakes were much higher now since he played more of an active role than just convincing Emma that Storybrooke was under a curse. Maybe he was just beginning to realize that his life would always be one curse after another. How many times would he gain a new family member just to lose another?

It was an endless cycle that Henry blamed himself for continuing. Emma would be okay if she was still in Boston. She would be okay if they never left Storybrooke to help Gold find Neal. She wouldn't have used magic if he wasn't so gullible and believed that Peter Pan needed his heart to save all the lost boys. Emma would have been fine if both she and Henry lived in New York again, having no memory of Storybrooke and no memory of everyone they left behind. Worse of all, Emma would still be Emma if Henry kept Merlin's pen and used the pen to remove the darkness from her.

The main problem was that Henry was too childish to come to his senses and to realize that sometimes a person had to do the wrong thing in order for good to continue. But then, when would a person stop acting evil? Things weren't as black and white as they use to be. What did it really mean to be good? Doing good deeds or having good intentions? Who decided what good and bad was? Were the heroes just the people who were liked the most? Was a villain just a villain because the heroes decided they were? Was there such a thing as good and bad magic? Did it make any difference if someone was using white magic or dark magic? Was magic entirely bad? All these questions ran through his head, creating more questions and leading him further away from any solutions.

He walked back over to his desk and sank down into his chair. He swung around, looking at how much bigger his room was at Regina's manor than at the Charmings' flat. For years, he went back and forth from staying his mom to living with his grandparents and his other mom. He was never really by himself. He never just sat alone in an empty room and thought about abstract concepts like goodness and evilness. It could be a sign he was growing up and losing the childlike qualities that best characterized him. He knew that getting older came with a lot of privileges but he didn't realize that growing up led to being filled with so much doubt and confusion. This wasn't just teenaged angst as Regina had earlier pointed out. This was the beginning to an end of innocence. Innocence was one of the things that Snow and Charming fought so hard for him to keep. As he swung around in his chair, he realized that he was losing his innocence, his naivety was slowly dripping away, and this newfound state of questioning was here to stay.

He returned to his book and idly flipped through the pages of Grandpa Charming waking up Grandma Snow with a kiss. He heard a car honk, then immediately heard his mother's voice from, what he assumed, the office or the living room on the ground floor. He heard the front door, listening to the clicks of his mother's heels as she stepped onto the pavement. He peered out the window in front him, noticing that his mother was talking to someone in a sheriff's car. Charming must have been checking up on him. Henry's eyes traveled back down to the picture of his grandpa kissing his true love and then his eyes traveled back to the sheriff car outside. He had a "happy ending" but he wasn't at peace. What was the point of a happy ending if you spent your whole life trying to protect the people you loved. With one swift move, Henry slammed the book shut.

"I had enough fairy tales for one day," he said out loud to himself as a familiar breeze trickled against his neck.

"Aye laddy," said a voice from behind him.

Henry jumped out his chair and immediately turned around to see his mother's boyfriend surrounded by a thick red cloud.

_Wait_? Henry thought.  _When did Hook get magic? Right. Mom told me that Hook somehow became the dark one._

He didn't look any different. Maybe he wasn't going to hurt Henry but then why did he teleport into his bedroom while his mother and his grandpa were outside talking? Was the Dark Swan right? Was Emma actually still inside the Dark Swan and trying to salvage any traces of goodness by protecting her flesh and blood from a scorned lover. If Emma was right, then Henry was in danger.

"Hook?" Henry spoke as if he was asking a questioning. He backed up against his desk and his hands automatically grabbed onto the edge of the desk.

"A bit skittish my boy?" he asked as he flashed his usual smile while taking a step closer.

"You don't have to be like my moms and let the darkness consume you," Henry quickly said.

"You said that rather smartly," Hook said as he shook his head. "You're damn mother must have got to you first. So you know what she did to me?"

Henry's eyes widened and Hook's smile disappeared from his face. Emma turned Hook into a dark one? How did she do that and still live? Why did she want her boyfriend to become evil? There were so many questions filling his head that he didn't realize that Hook stepped even closer. Now Henry was starting to doubt the reason Emma had came. Was the only reason Emma had visited him was to save face? Or did she truly believe that the Captain of the Jolly Rogers would hurt the grandson of Snow White and Prince Charming?

"You can fight it," Henry told him. "I know you can. You did it before."

"Not that simple. Pretty soon I'll be the most hated person in town."

"Hook, you aren't like Grandpa Gold," Henry said as he removed his hands from his desk and took a step closer to the pirate." You aren't weak. You don't need dark magic to make you feel powerful."

Hook eyebrows tilted to the center of his face as he narrowed his lips. He ran his fingers through his black hair, sighed and said, "Damn right! I'm not but your bilge rat of a mother is going to have hell to pay."

Henry never heard Hook talk about someone as horrible as he was talking about Emma. He understood he was angry at her, Henry was still a little mad at her, but Emma did not deserve to be badmouthed. Henry hoped that Hook was just mad and that wasn't going to actually do anything to hurt Emma or anyone else. However, he was starting to see why Emma was worried about Henry's safely because Hook was starting to become angrier by the minute. The way his face was turning red, how his jaw clenched and how tense his body was becoming was starting to frightened Henry. He thought about calling for his mom or his grandfather but he wasn't sure if that would make Hook do something rash that would jeopardize Henry's safety. He had to be cautious and try to prevent Hook from getting more worked up.

"Sorry laddy, but it is too late," he snarled. Hook's eyes darkened and he raised his voice in a way that made Henry take a step back. "When I'm done with Storybrooke, it would be worse than the Godforsaken Davy Jones' locker."

Henry's hands gripped the edge of the desk again. He gulped as the pirate moved his face closer to his. Emma was right to warn Henry about Hook. She wasn't just upset about the way the pirate treated her. Henry was a little relief to know that his mother still cared for him. If only she would have stayed or told Regina that Hook was going to come him. Now the only thing Henry could hope for was that his mother and Grandpa looked up at the window and noticed that something was going on upstairs. They might not have seen Hook since Henry's back blocked him from the window's view but they should have at least been concern why Henry's back was turned towards the window.

"Hook, you are not evil," Henry stated.

"Oh, that's where you are wrong, boy. I'm Admiral of the Black hell."

Hook stood inches away from his face, close enough to muffle a sound if Henry decided to scream.

As much as he wanted to believe that Hook would never hurt him, he was beginning to think that Hook would hurt him just to prove how evil he was. The phrase "he doesn't give a damn about the rest" felt more like a warning in retrospect than it initially did when Emma said it. Hook knew Henry when he was just a ten-year-olds. He watched him grow into a confident young man who would do anything to protect the people he loved. Now Hook looked at him as a means to a plan. Whatever that plan was or what it entailed was not good. He needed to get away from Hook and then find Emma and stop Hook from destroying the town. At this moment, the only thing Henry could do was stall and hope he could stall Hook long enough for Regina and Charming to realize that Henry was in danger.

"This isn't you," he said, hoping Hook would see that he was terrorizing the son of the woman he loved.

"I'm the worse bloody pirate in this hellhole," Hook whispered, glaring at Henry as he snarled after overemphasizing each word. He stepped even closer and began smiling in a way that unnerved Henry.

As Henry stared at the pirate, he could hear Regina's voice from outside, telling Charming that Henry was safe upstairs in his room and needed some time alone. He wished she knew that her son's body was so close to an older man that Henry could smell the two sprints of cologne on the pirate's neck, feel his warm rum-scented breath against his forehead, and feel his leather-clad knee rub against his adolescent legs. If only she knew that Henry had gulped when Hook slowly raised his one hand up and placed it on Henry's shoulder, tightening the grip as he widened his smile. Henry shuddered as Hook pressed his body closer to his, forcing the Savior's son to press his back firmly into the edge of the desk. Henry nervously placed his arms behind him as he leaned away from the pirate's face, his fingers brushing against the heated porcelain handle of his hot chocolate.

_The cup,_  he thought.  _That's it. If I could distract Hook long enough to grab the mug, I could pour the hot liquid on him, run and scream for mom._

"Whatever my mom did, please don't punish me for it," he quickly said. "She ripped Violet's heart out. I'm mad at her, too."

"Henry," he said slowly, over-enunciating the syllables in his name. "I'm not to going to make you dance the hempen jig. I have a handsome offer and if you just come with me, I'll-"

"There's no way I'm going anywhere with a dirty pirate!" Henry interrupted as he grabbed the mug's handle with two of his fingers. His heart was beating fast, so fast against his chest, he felt like Hook could hear the intensity of the beats and would use his magical hook, rip it out and crush the heart right in front of the Savior's son.

"Dirty?" he chuckled as he brought his face even closer to Henry's. Henry hoped that Hook didn't hear that cup slide against the wooden desk. "I bathe quite frequently, thank you very much."

"Hook, please."

Henry grabbed firmly into the handle, preparing himself to swing the mug and quickly throw it in Hook's face. Henry would have to act fast. He would have to scream for help and try to escape his room fast enough so Hook wouldn't use magic against him. Henry hoped that Hook's lack of magical skills would act as a disadvantage, making Hook slower to react than someone like his mothers or Grandpa Gold.

"Laddy, you know better than to beg. Didn't the crocodile teach you anything?"

"He was too busy lying to Belle to tell me his life stories."

Hook nodded and his face softened. He moved his hand off Henry's shoulder and it looked like he had a change of heart. Henry didn't. He immediately swung his cup and threw the liquid in Hook's direction, the hot chocolate projected onto Hook's face.

"AHHH ye damn bastard!" Hook screamed while Henry pushed him and lunged for the door. Hook swore as he fell onto the ground.

"Mom!" Henry yelled as he ran as fast as he towards the doorway. He could hear the front door slam open and seen traces of purple fog appear behind him in his room. He didn't hear Hook's screams anymore and assumed that he left.

"HENRY!" he heard Charming yell for him.

For some reason, Henry couldn't answer. The only thing he could do was run and keep running even when he saw Charming running towards him.

"Henry!" Charming grabbed Henry by the end of his sleeve to stop him from running, pushed his trembling body behind him with such force that he fell hard to floor, right on the edge of the stairs. Henry stayed still as Charming held his pistol up and began shouting while he walked towards Henry's room. Charming stopped at Henry's doorway and Regina walked out of the room and shook her head.

When she saw Henry, she ran towards him and asked, "Henry what happened?" She watched as he shook his head before pulling him up and placing both hands on his shoulder. Her eyes looked so watery as her face contorted between expressions of sadness and anger."What did Emma do? WHAT DID SHE DO?'

"They left," Charming said as he walked back over to Regina and Henry. "Henry, what happened?"

"Was it Emma?" Regina asked him again.

Charming placed the gun back in his holster as he took out his phone. Henry noticed the tears forming in his eyes. He must have thought Emma was so far gone that she would hurt Henry.

"No, Emma didn't," Henry spat, noticing how relieved Charming was for a second. Regina's emotions didn't change.

"Who?" she asked.

"Hook."

Regina looked back at Charming and the two exchanged a surprised look that quickly faded into an expression of intense anger.

"I'm going to -" Charming started saying until he stopped and started running down the stairs.

"Wait!" Henry yelled as he watched Charming stand still in the middle of the stairs "Emma. She came and warned me that Hook was now the Dark One and wanted to hurt me."

"Take Henry to the apartment so Snow can watch him," Charming said as he headed towards the front door. "We need to find Emma."

"So she can tell us what the hell is going on," Regina added as she wrapped an arm around Henry and nudged him down the steps.

As he walked, Henry couldn't believe what had happened. One minute his mother was warning him about Hook, the next minute Hook was pressing his body against Henry, then Henry threw hot chocolate in his face, and his other mom and grandpa came to investigate. Earlier today his only worry was that no one in his family was ever going to be entirely happy, then he was feeling confused if there was such a thing as good and evil, but now his only thought was how Hook had violated his personal space to make a point. That point was to show Henry that he was evil now and wanted to make Henry feel uncomfortable in order to get back at Emma. He hoped that he would not have an encounter like that again. It was something that Henry feared that he would never get over.

As he grabbed his coat from the closet neared the front door, Henry just wished that things were back to normal. He grabbed his navy blue trench coat, turned to the mirror on the closet door and placed an arm in each sleeve. He looked at the mirror as he adjusted his collar, loudly gasping when he saw a faint red cloud appear behind him.

"Mom!" he yelled just as an angry pirate appeared from the red fog.

"Henry!" he heard Regina yell back.

Henry tried to run but Hook grabbed him by his closet and pulled him close. Just as a purple cloud starting to appear, the thickness of Hook's red fog surrounded Henry, enveloping him until it was the only thing he saw. Henry felt his body begin to float through the redness, becoming so light that Hook's grip felt like a brick was waiting for him down. His head spun as the world around him ceased to exist. He could hear his mother's voice, her screams were faint and sounded so far away. He closed his eyes to focus on her direction, trying to pull himself away from Hook to move closer to her voice. It was to no avail. He could no longer hear her voice and instead heard the sound of something else. It was like a loud swishing sound. He moved closer to the noise, stumbling and falling through space until his feet touched something. His body fell onto something hard as the red cloud disappeared and a blinding light took its place.

He heard Hook utter something, the intensity of his voice sounded like he was hovering over Henry. The roughness of wooden floorboards scraped against his palm as he blindly tried to move away from his captor. He called out for Regina and Emma but he only heard the pirate's chuckle. A hand grabbed the back of his coat's collar and he felt himself rise up onto his feet. The ground beneath him was moving slowly as if it was floating on water. He wobbled as his eyes adjusted to the brightness around him. His vision was blurry but he could clearly see Hook's face. Henry closed his eyes, opened it and realized where Hook had taken him to.

"No," Henry exclaimed as he fell back down. He could feel his eyes stinging as looked up at the smiling dark one. "Why are you doing this?"

"Welcome to the Jolly Roger," Hook announced as he once again grabbed Henry and started dragging him towards the back of his boat.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Henry feels uncomfortable after waking up in a locked room in the Jolly Rogers. Will he discover the reason Hook kidnapped him or will he decide to keep his mouth shut to prevent angering Hook?

Henry woke up to the feeling of his bed shaking. The sudden movement jerked his body, resulting in him falling to the ground with a large thump. He pressed his palms against the floor to push himself up and was surprised when he felt rough wood instead of plush carpet. He immediately glanced around the room, all the memories of Dark Hook kidnapping him flooding his mind. The cabin he was dragged into was a small room with dark colored planks on the floor, walls, and ceilings. There was a twin sized bed with a dark colored wooden bed frame that was nailed into the wall, and a dungeon styled door with a small window in the center of it.

He slowly rose up, his balance unsteady since - he assumed - the Jolly Roger must have been sailing through harsh waters. The sound of thunder confirmed this theory. When he was near the door, a wave swayed the ship, the force causing Henry to trip and fall against the door. Standing up again, he tried looking through the window yet he could only see the murky color of the ocean.

All of a sudden, something came over Henry. His heart started racing, his mind started buzzing and his hands immediately began banging against the door. He screamed for help, the words came out faster than his mind could realize what was going on. Pain ripped through his body as he continued to hit his fist against the door. He stopped, tears pouring down his face as he slid his back against the wall. He placed a bruised hand on his chest as his body struggled to breathe. The world around him faded as he noticed glints of red fog appearing in the room. He closed his eyes, trying to get himself under control as everything went dark again.

When he woke up again, he could feel someone hovering over him. Henry smelled a familiar scent of rum and cheap cologne, which comforted him and for a second, he thought he was back at the Charming's apartment. He turned over, half-expecting to hear Emma's raspy "Hey kid" or Snow's soothing "Good morning sweetie." When he didn't hear anything, he assumed that Hook was going to wake him up and tell him something about the Dark Swan. When he opened his eyes and saw that he was in one of the Jolly Roger's cabins, he immediately sat up and moved away from the evil pirate, who was sitting on the edge of his bed.

"Good morning, dark prince," Hook said in his usual warm tone. He smiled as he waved a glowing red hand in Henry's direction. Henry's eyes widened when he noticed Hook's hand. "You were a bit addled so I had to give you a spell to calm your nerves."

Hook stared at Henry as if nothing strange had happened. Did he forget the way he appeared in Henry's room, intimidated him, and then kidnapped him from his own home? That's not even mentioning the way that Hook had strutted over to him, pressing his body real close to him, just inches away from his face to stare at him. The usual chatty pirate had glared at him in a way that made Henry uncomfortable. Uncomfortable wasn't the right word to describe it. It felt like he was going to hurt Henry in a way that he was never hurt before.

Now, Henry sat alone with his assaulter, in a small room on a ship in the middle of some ocean, and no one would be around to hear him scream. The thought of what Hook could easily do to him made his heart palpitate. The only thing Henry could do to protect himself was to appeal to Hook's inner goodness.

Without skipping a beat, Henry began rambling, "Whatever happened back at Camelot, you don't have to let it make you evil. My mom stopped being the Evil Queen. You can do the same thing. You can be the hero. You can stop my mom from destroying Storybrooke as the Dark One."

Hook sighed and looked down at his hand as the glowing subsided. He smirked before looking back up at Henry, who moved closer to the wall and further away from Hook. The teenager stared at the pirate, preparing himself for what the newest Dark One was about to say.

"I hate to break it to you love," Hook began.

His voice was warm and soft yet his message was the exact opposite. He seemed so much like himself. Henry knew that if he could reason with Hook, now would be the best time. He tried doing that last time, but perhaps Hook would believe the message more a second time. Henry had to have hope that Hook was still in there. If he didn't, then the man on his bed was an enemy and Henry was in danger. The last thing he needed to do was panic again.

"But I'm the real villain here," Hook continued. "Batten up the hatches because nothing your mums or even the crocodile did compares to what I have planned."

"You stopped being a villain," he reminded him.

Henry could see the exasperated look on Hook's face, which made Henry wonder if Hook was going to act creepy again to prove he was evil. Maybe that was the reason that Hook decided to act weird. Henry needed to drop the subject quickly so Hook didn't become angry again.

"And your mother made me one again," Hook quickly said.

It still wasn't clear what Emma had done to turn Hook evil, and maybe if Henry could figure out exactly what turned Hook dark, then he could convince him to let him go. It wasn't a fool-proof plan but he had to think of something.

"You don't-" Henry started to say.

"I heard enough!" Hook yelled, making Henry begin to shake.

Hook glared at Henry in such a way that made Henry hunch his shoulders. The Savior's son wrapped his arms around himself as Hook just stared, baring his teeth and lowering his eyebrows. The poor boy shivered under the intensity of Hook's gaze, his eyes alone could have turned his body into stone.

Similarly to the previous day's events, Hook started leaning closer, so close that Henry could feel the stubble of his five o'clock shadow on his soft cheek. The now familiar feeling of discomfort made Henry close his eyes just as Hook's rum-scented hot breath blew in his face. His eyes popped open when Hook grabbed his face with his one hand and pulled the boy's face near his, their lips close enough to kiss. Henry stared wide-eyed at the pirate, quivering as he watched the corners of Hook's mouth form into a smirk. Just when Henry thought that Hook was going to cross a forbidden line, the pirate growled and said, "I was sparing your life, don't make me regret it." He let go of the frightened teen, quickly stood up, and stomped over towards to the door. He closed the door with a slam, leaving Henry all alone to think about what had just happened.

Henry's eyes began to sting as he fought back tears. His mothers would be displeased if they knew he wanted to cry so badly. Like his blonde-haired mother often did, he took a deep breath, recomposed himself, and tried to distance himself from his emotions. He focused on the idea that his family was doing everything in their power to save him, just like they did when Pan took him to Neverland. Neither of his grandparents or mothers would rest until Henry was safely sitting in a booth at Granny's with Violet while drinking hot chocolate sprinkled with cinnamon.

"Violet," he muttered to himself.

He needed to think about her. If Neal were here, he would have told Henry that focusing on Violet was the best way to stay hopeful. He pictured her dark luscious hair, the top part pinned behind her head while the rest hung loosely from behind. Her hair was nicely contrasted by her tan complexion, her skin was kissed by the sun from spending time riding her white horse under the rays of the brilliant daylight. The next thing he thought about was her dark eyes, those doey brown eyes that made her look so sweet and innocent. After her eyes, her smile - warm and genuine and her soft pink lips, added to her beauty.

Her image in his mind made him momentarily forget that he was kidnapped by his mother's evil boyfriend. The thought of her was as pleasant as getting a hug from Emma, seeing a smile on Regina's face, spending the afternoon riding in the front seat of the sheriff's car with Charming or drinking hot chocolate in bed next to Snow. Saying her name out loud felt as wonderful as all the times he spent with Neal.

Violet was the best thing he could ever wish for. That's probably why he had such a hard time forgiving Emma for using his love for the Camelton maiden against him. He knew if Regina had done the same thing as Emma, he would have forgiven her by now. Emma was the mother that was pure and had a good heart. She was the one he aspired to be. He loved Regina and liked that she had changed, but he knew that she will always wrestle with her dark side. That's why he trusted Emma more than Regina. He just never expected Emma to hurt him. He knew that Emma's heart was darkened now, but her intentions were still good, like when she warned Henry about Hook.

Hook, he thought with disgust.

He needed to know what Hook wanted with him, and he understood now that this wasn't about Emma. Obviously, Dark Hook had a plan that involved him. Was Henry just a bargaining tool to make everyone obey Hook? There was no arguing that Henry was everyone's favorite and that everyone in his family and maybe even the town would risk their lives for him, even Grandpa Rumple would. For some reason, Henry couldn't believe that Hook just needed Henry as leverage. Henry needed to know why Hook said that he was "sparing his life." Was he planning to kill everyone in town and decided that Henry shouldn't suffer? Was there some goodness left in Hook that remembered how much he adored the Savior's son? Regardless of Hook's intentions for him, Henry was sure that he would find out soon.

He was right. After falling asleep to the memory of dancing with Violet, Henry was awakened by Hook's stern voice coming from behind the door. The pirate's English accent softened the anger in his voice, but Henry knew him well enough to hear the anger hidden in his thick British twang. Henry noticed that Hook had removed the wooden board from the small window in the door, which revealed his eyes to Henry. The boy stood up and walked over to pirate, the wooden door acting as a barrier between them, which made Henry feel safer knowing that Hook couldn't touch him.

"Where's your pen?" Hook asked.

Without even thinking, Henry answered, "I'm not using my power on you."

"I didn't ask that."

Hook slid the wooden piece over the window, finally leaving Henry alone. The temporarily moment of relief was cut short when Henry heard the doorknob rattle. He jumped back, staring at the door as he shivered. The image of Dark Hook with blazing red eyes, jaw clenched, and hand bent into a fist, appeared in his mind.

As the knob rattled, Henry's heart started beating rapidly, so fast that his chest started hurting. He placed a hand on his chest, taking a deep breath and trying to steady his heartbeat. Just knowing that Hook was about to take his anger out on him made the poor boy nervous. He had never felt so scared in his life - not even the time when he ate Regina's sleeping curse or the time when he was going to sacrifice himself to Pan could compare to being captured by a Dark One.

Heck, his experience with the Dark Hook wasn't like anything that he had read in his storybook. The closest he could compare his experience to was Belle, but at least she volunteered to go with Rumple and he treated her nicely. Hook had taken Henry against his will and seemed devoted to terrorizing him. No amount of hope or fairy tales could save Henry from what Hook was about to do when he came into the door.

When the door swung open, Henry froze in space as Hook took a step in, glaring at the young boy as his eyes searched him up and down. Henry didn't appreciate the smirk that Hook had when he noticed that he was afraid. The last thing Henry needed was for Hook to know that he could easily be intimidated into doing what the Dark One wanted. He slowly took a step back and walked out, leaving the door open. Henry was glad that he was leaving, knowing that being locked in the room alone was safer than being near Dark Hook. Instead of walking away as Henry wanted, Hook just stood there scowling.

"Come out," Hook spat, before turning back and saying. "Don't make me say it twice."

Henry wasn't about to challenge Hook's threats. He walked up to the door frame, trying to avoid Hook's menacing stare as he came closer to him. Hook started walking through a lantern-lit hallway, Henry trailing behind him, making note of everything he walked past. There were two doors on the left and one on the right.

The hallway wasn't that large, and it immediately opened up to the main area in the interior of the boat. Hook gestured to a small, black, fold-out table with four black metal fold out chairs. Hook took a seat at the table on one side and Henry sat on the opposite side.

Henry watched the pirate reach from under the table, pulling out a silver tray with a glass bottle full of brown liquid and two small glass cups. He placed the tray in the middle of the table before pouring the liquid into the cups. He slid one of the cups to Henry's side, taking the other for himself.

"What do you want?" Henry asked.

Although his phrase could have come across as defiant, Henry spoke softly and respectfully. He looked at the man in the eye for a second, before looking down at the glass that Hook had slid to him. He picked up the glass, staring at the suspicious liquid before setting it back down. Henry could feel Hook's eyes staring at him, so he glanced up and noticed that Hook wasn't glaring at him anymore. Something about Henry's humbleness softened Hook and sparks of his former self-reappeared.

"Have a drink with me," he offered while taking a swig of brown liquid. "That's all."

Henry picked up the glass again and placed it to his mouth. As he took a sip, the pungent taste of alcohol touched the tip of his tongue. He immediately put the glass down and said, "This is-"

"You aren't a little boy anymore," Hook said in a matter-of-factly tone. "Your old man would have done the same at your age."

"Don't talk about my dad."

Henry was surprised how firm the phrase came out of his mouth. From the short time he had spent with Neal, he immediately loved him and respected him. Neal wasn't able to help Henry through the early parts of his childhood, but he was there for Henry during his early adolescent years. He wouldn't let his father's memory be disrespected by Hook.

"Why?" Hook countered. Before Henry could even form a rebuttal, Hook continued, "Because he was a good man? You forgot he was a grown man when he met your teenaged mother. Deserted her in prison while pregnant, and never bother to see her afterward."

"You're wrong," He protested. "He was there for me."

He could feel his heartbeat accelerate as thoughts started piling up in his head. Neal was a good guy. He did the right thing for Emma by letting her go so she could save Storybrooke. He gave his life to save Rumple and would have risked his life to save Henry if given the chance. Hook, of all people, should have known not to bring up Neal. Hook knew Neal when he was Henry's age, that Rumple treated him wrong, that Marian was taken from him. Even if Hook would get angry at Henry for disagreeing with him, Henry would not let another dark one hurt his father.

"You mean after your mom and you stumbled upon him in New York?" said the pirate with a sadistic smile on his face. His eyes were starting to become darker while the air in the Jolly Roger became stiffer. "Face it, laddy. He saw your mother as a little girl he could take advantage of. Wonder if he would do the same to your Violet?"

"He wouldn't!"

"Baelfire's just like the Crocodile," he said with a snicker as he stood, walking over to Henry. He sat on his knees, not so he could be eye level with Henry but to patronize him and make him feel intimidated. "Take a young and vulnerable girl, he uses her and then abandons her. Since the apple doesn't fall far from the tree…" He paused, smirking before saying, "You'll do the same. Once you have that little Camelot girl all to yourself-"

"STOP TALKING!"

Henry jumped up, chest puffed out, fist balled, breathing hard. He drew the line when it came to Violet. If he wouldn't let Hook belittle his father, he wouldn't let anyone say anything about his girl. Henry was helpless in this situation, but he would not let Hook use Violet as a way to intimidate him. Henry liked her, would do anything to protect her, and he had a feeling that she would do the same for him.

Hook stood up, now hovering over Henry. He lowered his voice, slowly over-enunciating each of his words. "You'll take her to your bedroom."

"STOP TALKING!"

"Since you have no idea what the hell you're doing, she'll be miserable. Then, you would realize you don't need her anymore, and you'll leave her just like your dad left your mom, and his dad left Marian and Belle."

"I wouldn't!"

"You'll be a deadbeat father like the rest of the men in your family."

Henry's head spun as he stood in front of his captor, fuming as a memory of a good Hook and him playing in his head. He remembered after Neal died, Hook had come to see him at the Charming's apartment. Hook told him something and made Henry promise not to tell anyone. It was the story of when Hook's father left him and his brother, Liam when they were kids. They were sold to work as servants on a ship until they made enough money to buy their freedom. Hook told Henry that at least his father didn't leave him by choice. The story made Henry feel better at the time and gave him a little leverage at the present moment.

"Deadbeat? The only person that's a deadbeat was your father who left you and Liam-"

Henry was interrupted when Hook's palm came crashing down against Henry's cheek. He just slapped Henry. The stinging feeling in his cheek was a pain he never experienced before.

The boy stood wide-eyed as the villainous man stood over him, sneering as his only hand returned to his side. Hook, the man he would have trusted with his life, had just put his hands on him. Henry had never been slapped by a parent or another adult before. Sure, Regina might have roughly grabbed him but that was only a few times and she always apologized. There was no doubt in Henry's mind now that Hook was dark. He was done reasoning with the newest Dark One.

"Now I am tired of these games with you!" the pirate yelled. "Listen closely, you are going to write that I am the only Dark One that can touch you."

Henry could feel his heart beating faster as Hook confirmed the reason for his capture. This was all about Emma. Hook wanted to hurt her by keeping the person she loved the most away from her. This was not just extremely petty for a scorned lover, but really dark.

Hook knew the whole story. He knew that Henry didn't meet her until he was ten, and he knew how hard it was for Henry to have a relationship with his birth mother - which was against Regina's chagrin for a very long time. There was no way that Henry was going to let anyone take his mother away from him. Not again. It didn't matter if Emma was now evil and did things to hurt him. Emma loved him so much and didn't deserve to spend her life separated from her child. Even if she made Violet reject Henry, he would always love her and forgive her. Hook, on the other hand, wasn't going to get the same amount of love, forgiveness, and chances. He was officially the enemy.

"I won't do it," Henry proclaimed. Although his voice was firm, he took a step back for safety measures. He could no longer trust the man in front of him.

"Don't act like you have a choice," He responded.

Before Henry could respond, Hook roughly grabbed him by the shoulders, making the Savior's son shout. With his one hand, he dragged the poor boy towards the back of the ship, where the cabins were. Henry protested as Hook pushed him down the hallway, past the two closed doors that Henry had noted earlier. The door to Henry's room was open in a way that seemed welcoming to the poor captive.

When they reached Henry's room, Hook pushed him past the door frame, making Henry stumble and fall on his side with a loud thump. Henry winced as he rubbed his side, mentally praying that the pain would subside.

He slowly stood up when he realized that the Dark One was staring at him. He sighed as he noticed that Hook's one hand was on the door, looking as if he was about to slam it shut. He must have been waiting for something, Henry assumed. Or perhaps he was going to hit him again.

This had to be the worse situation Henry had ever been in. He didn't know what was going to happen or when it was going to happen. He was at the mercy of Hook and there was no one there who was going to save him.

The way Hook was staring at him, studying him, Henry wasn't sure if he should say something. Speaking would enrage Hook but maybe if Henry mentioned his reasons for not using the pen, maybe Hook would understand. The last thing Henry needed was for Hook to get angry at Henry for not doing what he was told. There was an angry Dark One was willing to do anything to make someone do what they wanted. That fact terrified the teenager.

"I can't do that to Emma," Henry explained. He spoke cautiously, keeping his eyes down and his voice soft.

It didn't matter what Henry said or how he said it. Hook was still enraged.

"You ungrateful bastard," Hook yelled. "I'm doing this for you."

With that, Hook slammed the door shut, locking it behind him. The sheer force of the slam made Henry jump back, his heart wildly beating and his hand protectively covering his face. Once the sound of Hook's footsteps became silent, Henry took a deep breath and sat on his bed.

He didn't want to consider the meaning of Hook's statement, but his mind was already working on it, uncovering the hidden meanings. Hook wanted Henry to write that Hook could be the only Dark One to touch him. If this wasn't about Emma, then who could it be? Rumple was no longer dark and there weren't any other dark ones besides the Dark Swan. This didn't make sense. What was Hook planning to do? If so, was he planning to protect Henry or preparing to hurt him as some sort of ritualistic revenge against the Charming-Mills family?

Whatever Hook was scheming, Henry wasn't going to use his pen to help him. He would never use the gift that Merlin gave him to help evil. That was the only thing Henry knew for sure.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Henry is struggling to disobey Hook while Hook is hurting him to force Henry to use the pen. Will Henry continue the good fight or will Hook use the very thing or person to make the young boy do his bidding?

Henry laid in bed, wishing that he could see Violet one last time and tell her how much she meant to him. It had occurred to Henry that his chances of getting out alive were slim. He had spent the last two days, without receiving any water or food or any visitation from Hook. Henry was feeling light-headed, his mouth was dry and he no longer had the energy to sit up. His stomach was loudly growling while he desperately needed to use the restroom. After being kidnapped for a total of three days, he no longer was confident in his family's ability to find him - at least find him alive. The one comfort he had was that he would die protecting good, disobeying Hook's order to stop his plan - whatever it was. The only thing Henry wanted was to see Violet, give her a kiss and tell her that he would find her in the afterlife. He closed his eyes, knowing that his dreams would be his only escape from the situation.

When he opened them, he saw him standing at the door, leaning against it as he took a sip from his flask. Henry looked at him for a second, before closing his eyes. Whatever Hook wanted, Henry knew he wasn't going to like it. There was no point arguing since Henry barely had any energy left in him to do anything.

"Done licking your wounds?" he asked before he took a long pull from his flask. He placed his flask back into his leather coat, then wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeve.

He seemed calmer than usual. Then again, whenever Henry thought Hook was calm, he would quickly become enraged. Henry couldn't deal with an angry Hook.

"I'm not talking to you," Henry whispered, struggling to make the words come out of his mouth.

He glanced over at his captor, expecting his nostrils to flare or his eyes to glare. Yet, Hook just raised an eyebrow while the corners of his mouths rose before turning into a frown.

"No need," Hook said. His voice sounded so soft as if he was himself again. "I need you to write."

Henry turned over to glare at the pirate but instead, he stared wide-eyed while his mouth dropped open. He watched as Hook reached into his leather jacket and pulled out the Author's pen. There was no way that Hook would have been able to get the pen. Henry had destroyed the pen after the Apprentice warned him about how dangerous the pen was. He knew that the temptation to use the pen to change reality would have been there always. The main reason he knew he couldn't possess the pen was that he had such a strong desire to resurrect Neal. He had to choose to do the right thing over trying to save his father.

Still, there was no way that Hook could have gotten the pen. It was broken in half and thrown into the fireplace in the Apprentice's mansion. Wait, unless the magic in the pen was powerful enough to reconstruct itself. If that was true, that didn't explain how Hook was able to find the pen. The pen was made of light magic and it wouldn't have let anything dark find it. Something just didn't add up and Henry needed to know why.

"How did you get this?" he asked.

Hook shrugged his shoulders and replied, "Doesn't matter."

The evilness in Hook was making him into a real jerk. He would have never talked to Henry in such a matter if he wasn't the dark one. He wouldn't have tricked him into drinking alcohol, pressed his adult body against his adolescent one and kidnapped him if he wasn't dark. This newfound darkness couldn't be responsible for creating desire. Rumple wanted to be powerful and brave and Emma wanted to have thicker walls to prevent love from weakening her and determining her choices. Becoming dark only removed their inhibitions, allowing them to express themselves in ways that wished they could but never would have allowed themselves to do before.

What were Hook's hidden desires then? The first thing he did when he became dark was hurt Emma's feelings and threaten to get revenge on her. Then, he went into Henry' room and kidnapped him, holding him captive and scaring him into using the Author's pen. If darkness revealed what was in Hook's heart, then he stopped loving Emma and stopped caring about Henry. What made Hook change his mind? Maybe if Henry could figure that out, he could convince Hook to change his plans and let him go.

As Hook twirled the sacred object in between his fingers as if it was a regular Inkjoy pen, Henry's felt a sickening stomach in his feeling. The phrase, "Villains don't get happy endings," and "Once a villain always a villain" played in his head. Regina used to tell Henry those two phrases when she was afraid she would never feel happy or when the battle with her inner evil queen was becoming too hard. Hook was always the enemy. He just masked his villainous qualities by making the Savior love him. Or perhaps Emma was just a pretty blonde lady that he wooed just for the hell of it. Henry hated the idea that the man his mother loved didn't love her back.

The idea he hated more was the thought of what Hook had done during his extended stay in Neverland. Hook was a very ... well ... at least he seemed like a sexual person and the only female around was Tinkle Bell. The other adults, besides her, was his crew. There also the Lost Boys, Hook could have developed an attraction to them. Henry wasn't trying to shame Hook for any sexual experiences he had with men but it would explain why Henry felt so uncomfortable when he was near. If Hook's inner desires were a gay romance or worse, a relationship with a younger male, then that would explain why Henry was targeted by the dark one. It wasn't just getting revenge against Emma. He was in love with Henry.

Henry gulped as he stared at the smirking pirate. Was that the reason that he wanted Henry to write that Hook was the only dark one that could touch him? Wait, did he touch as in a sexual way? That would explain why Hook wanted him to drink. He was trying to get him drunk to take advantage of him! Henry shuddered when he realized how close the distance between the door and the bed was. It would be easy for Hook to run over and attack him. If Henry wasn't so determined to preserve good, he probably would have just obeyed Hook's command. Doing the right thing was worth whatever Hook had planned for him. Judging by Hook's smirk, he had a lot of plans for the Savior's son.

"Now," Hook began. "I command ye to write?"

"Or what?"

Henry regretted the words that came out of his mouth. He knew that he wouldn't like what Hook had to say next. To his surprise, Hook didn't become angry. He just smirked and tucked the pen back into his jacket. He turned to walk out the door, stopping to say, "You should know better than to test a villain," then walked out, leaving Henry alone to consider what Hook was going to do to retaliate against Henry's defiance.

****

 

_Henry stood still, staring at the glimmer of the golden wings from the dark-haired girl as she fluttered around his head. Her small frame looked like a toy from a happy meal with a brightly colored purple dress, small matching shoes. She flew up, singing a sweet tune as sparkles fell from her fluttering wings. A speck of glitter landed on his pale cheek, immediately bringing color to his face as the substance made his face tingle. A smile appeared on his face as his gazed upon the twirling fairy. There was something enchanting about her that Henry couldn't put his finger on. Maybe it was her presence, the vibe of sunrise and happiness that she emitted. Or it could have been the attention she was paying to him. She was orbiting around his hair as if he was a planet, her entire world. He had a feeling that she would have done anything for him. In a way, she was his charm, his inner magic, and his personal angel._

  _All of a sudden, her wings grew dark and her dress became a deep shade of purple. Her skin became pale and the sparkles disappeared from her wings. She began falling, the air gently pushed her down, her body at the mercy of the Captain of gravity. Henry held out his hand, her remains fell into his palm. He stared at her, her bare skin felt cold as the fantastic fairy was no more and dazzling dust took her place. Blood leaked out of her small mouth, running slowly until his hands._

  _Henry's eyes widened when he realized that when her sparkle touched him, her life was drained as the color came into his face. She gave her life to restore him, revive him and revitalize him. Henry didn't understand why someone so special and beautiful would give up her life to make Henry happy. His brain raced, his mind finally comprehended what she had sung._

" _You deserve a happy ending," she sang._

  _Now as her words echoed in his head, he recognized the fairy's voice. His heart sank as he stared at the body in his hand. A tear rolled down his cheek, dripping onto her and wetting her hair. He would rather die for her. He wished he knew what she was going to do because he would have stopped her._

_"I love you," he said._

 

Henry sat up as his eyes opened, glaring around the empty cabin for the body of the fairy. He exhaled once he realized that he had been dreaming. He wished that he could say that the dream was worse than his current situation but it wasn't. Nightmares were scary when the dream was worse than the dreamer's reality. The best dreams were when the dream was better than the person's life.

The fact that he was spending another day under Hook's captivity made a tear drip down his face. Regina has always told him not to cry, even when he was very young. He remembered when he was around four, he came running into her room with a blanket in his hand after having a nightmare. He could hear the sound of his little feet padding across the wooden floor on the manor while he sobbed loudly. The second he reached the door to his mother's bedroom, Regina had already opened it, looking down at him with a disappointed stare. She was wearing a black robe, underneath it, Henry could see a glimpse of her silky red nightgown. Her hair was pinned back and she had no makeup on.

"Mommy," he remembered crying, hugging his blanket tightly against his chest. "I had a bad dream." He was wearing a red flannel pajama top and bottom with white bunny rabbit slippers. His brown hair was wild all over his small hair.

"Henry," he remembered her saying. Her voice was quiet yet it was harsh. The corner of her lips rising as if she was about to snarl. She lowered herself to her knees, eye level with her young son. "Don't you ever cry."

"But mom-" Henry whined as more tears dripped from his face.

"Do you know what our enemies would do if they see you upset?" she asked.

"En-na-mees?" he remembered asking. He was too young to fathom the idea that people did not like him and people did not like his mother. Plus, everyone in town was under Regina's curse and did exactly what she wanted them to. The idea of people not liking Henry was strange.

"You cannot let them see your emotions," she commanded as she wiped the tears from his face. "They would hurt you if they know you are weak. Promise me you will never cry over a bad dream again. Trust me. There are people who are a lot worse than the monsters in your nightmare."

Four-year-old Henry could not believe that people were more frightening than discolored and oddly shaped creatures with sharp teeth and talons. He didn't know that his mother at the time was the monster that he had encountered. All the horrible things she did had remained unknown to Henry until he was ten. The idea that his own mother was evil pushed him towards finding the mother that was good. Now, at the age of fifteen, Henry was beginning to understand that there was a fine line between a good person and a bad person. Hook, was the perfect example since he only needed a nudge to cross over back to the dark side. Although the fact that he was being held captured by Hook scared him, he going to take the advice that his mother gave him eleven years ago. Henry wiped the tears from his eyes, knowing that any minute that the monster with a claw for a hand and an English accent would come in. The last thing Henry needed was for Hook to see that he was wearing Henry down. It was already enough that he hadn't eaten in three days and was very dehydrated. Yesterday, he only had a few sips of water that dripped down into his cabin when the Jolly Ranger encountered harsh waves. Henry had no energy to do anything but sleep. He closed his eyes, hoping to see Violet in his dreams.

When Henry opened his eyes, his vision was blurry and he could barely concentrate his eyes to identify any objects around his room. There was something standing in front of him. The presence of the object didn't feel threatening. Perhaps, he was dreaming again but he felt as awful as he did when he was awake. Whatever was standing close to him, couldn't have been Hook. The pirate liked to make himself known by engaging in a conversation. It had to be a dream like a lucid dream. Regardless, he wanted his dreams to be about Violet. He closed his eyes, hoping he'll see her in his next dream.

He was awakened by the sound of his door opening. Henry groaned, turning to his side knowing that he was going to have to deal with his captor again. Hook was standing at the door, holding a thermostat with his only hand. His other arm was concealed behind the door as if he was hiding something from Henry. It was probably a meal. Hook was going to try to make a deal with Henry in exchange for food. He should be well aware that Henry was willing to die before he helped the dark one. That's what any of his family members would do.

"Rise and shine mate," Hook said in a voice that was too loud for Henry, especially since he hadn't heard too many sounds in over seventy-two hours. He smiled at Henry in a way that made him seem amused that the Savior's son was on his last leg. "You've been sleeping for quite a while. And I would bet me hand that you're hungry." He held up the black thermostat, something inside of it swooshed. He slowly placed it on the ground near the door. "C'mon and get lad. I know you want it."

"H-hook," Henry said, the words struggling to come out of his dry throat.

"What is it, boy?"

"N-no d-deal."

Hook chuckled and shook his head.

"The tea isn't up for bargaining. I can't have you dying on me."

Henry raised his eyebrows, staring at Hook's face to see if this was some kind of trick. He seemed sincere and Henry needed to put something down his throat. He slowly sat up, his back aching after laying down for so long. He took a deep breath, exhale and set one leg over the edged of the bed, then the other. He couldn't feel his feet touch the ground. He stood up, taking a cautious step toward the door. Hook was grinning as the Henry walked closer to the thermostat on the ground. He reached for the black container, glancing around to see if he could detect any trap. He picked it up, the heat warmed his skin instantly and he could feel his feet again. He took a few steps away from Hook before he opened the lid, inhaled the delicious scent of Eary Grey and took a small sip. The liquid went down with ease. He started drinking more of it quickly as his head was beginning to feel better.

"Easy now," Hook warned.

Henry, for some reason, listened to Hook, and closed the thermostat, setting it beside his bed.

"Feeling better?" he asked.

Henry still felt light-handed, dizzy, hungry and he had been wearing the same clothes for the last few days. He spent the last two days thinking about death and trying to prevent himself from crying. He hadn't heard anything from his family and he was starting to worry why it was taking so long for them to find him. At least, he felt well enough to stand and survive after day. He wasn't going to tell Hook that. He was going to appear as alert and as brave as possible.

"I'm going to take that as a yes," Hook said.

Henry thought about what Hook could have possibly done within the last couple of days. Henry didn't hear him walking around the boat except for the few times he came to talk to Henry. Unless he was lounging around with a flask filled with rum, he must have been in town causing mayhem for the Charmings and the Mills. His encounters with others didn't seem difficult, he appeared energetic, well-rested and well-fed. He even seemed happier than the last time Henry saw him a few days ago. Henry knew he must have thought the phrase, "he's up to something" a hundred times within the last five days but that was the thought that was running through his mind at the moment. Hook was just too giddy to give a starving captive tea. He did something to the tea or he was about to do something to Henry. Or worse, he was about to ask about the pen again.

"W-what do you want?" Henry asked, saying the words in a polite tone. The last thing he needed was to make Hook angry. He was surprised that he was still finding it difficult to talk.

"I want to strike a deal with ya."

Of course. The dark one wanted to make a deal. He knew that Henry wasn't in a place to bargain. The only thing Henry could think about was the tea he just drank. Now, Hook, had him cornered. The tea came with strings and now the Savior's son was at the mercy of devil. He shouldn't have trusted Hook and should have just starved like the martyrs he read about in the books about medieval saints and modern pacifists. Henry felt ashamed that he fell for Hook's trick.

"I thought you said that the tea wasn't about bargaining," Henry pointed out, a tinge of anger was in his voice.

"Aye," acknowledged Hook with his infamous smirk. "I did."

Hook's deception was one level beneath Grandpa Gold and his smirk one step away from giggling as Grampa Gold used to as Rumplestiltskin. At least Emma didn't have any annoying quirks as the dark one. Then again, she was a pretty reserved person anyway. Both Hook and Rumple were pretty outlandish before the darkness consumed them. Regardless of the habits of the dark ones, Hook manipulated Henry and took advantage of his weak state. That was low. Though, not as low as kidnapping him and starving him.

The memory of Henry throwing the hot chocolate in Hook's face played in his mind. This was revenge for when Henry was trying to get away from the newly dark Hook which happened right before Henry was kidnapped. Of course, Hook was going to use a beverage to fool him with. He felt like facepalming himself for not seeing the connection earlier. His mistake was about to cost him. Perhaps, he should apologize. No, Regina probably would urge him not to. He needed to say something before Hook got the last laugh. The only thing that he thought was safe to say was to acknowledge that Hook was once again, proving how evil he was now.

"You lied," Henry finally said. The words can out of his mouth smoothly. Talking was starting to become easier.

"No," Hook responded. "We weren't bargaining for the tea."

"Then, what?"

Henry knew he was about to regret the words that came out of his mouth. Whatever Hook was hiding behind the door, Henry knew he wasn't about to like what he was going to show him. Hook smile wider as he finally revealed what he had been hiding. His hook was around the pale neck of someone that was near to Henry's heart. The pointy part of the hook was inches away from the neck. The mouth of the person was duct-taped and the hands were bound behind the person's back. The person's face was slightly bruised, dried blood around the nose. The eyes were swollen from crying that the once cheery brown eyes were faded. Henry's heart jumped and his stomach sunk. He felt the same feeling that he felt when he lost his dad. He couldn't afford to lose another person he loved.

"Let her go!" Henry commanded.

Hook just chuckled and ran his fingers through her hair, making her squirm. Henry's hands balled into fists as he felt sick just watching how close he held her against him, stroking her hair as if he belonged to her.

"Isn't she cute?" he said in a question like way before pressing his lips against her forehead.

"Don't touch her!" he commanded, taking a step closer.

"Touch her? I'll give her a night of passion."

The thought of his body on top of hers made Henry feel like punching Hook. Henry no longer knew what Emma saw in Hook. The darkness couldn't have corrupted him to the extent that he would force himself on someone he once cared about. He took back all the anger he felt towards Emma after imagining what Hook would do to her if he would do what he was doing the girl he was currently holding against him. Henry would do anything to protect Hook from hurting the women he loved, especially the one he was threatening to hurt.

"Don't!"

"Why, what a lovely face?" Hook said as he turned to her. He bent down to smell her dark hair while gliding his hands down her arm. The girl was shaking, yet kept her eyes locked on Henry. She was pleading with her eyes to help him. "I wonder if you have a lovely -"

"Okay!" Henry yelled. He wasn't going to let Hook do anything to her. She knew she was going to hate that Henry would help evil win just to save her but he loved her. She was worth it. "I'll write for you but I want a deal."

"Of course," Hook said finally releasing her. "You are the grandson of the Crocodile."

"But on my terms," Henry stated. "You don't do anything bad to Violet if I write what you want me to."

"You have a deal."


	4. Chapter 4

Henry stood still while everything around him was spinning. He felt helpless as he stood across the room, watching his crush struggle within his - now their - captor's grip. The look in Violet's eyes, what was once filled with hope and happiness, was now filled with fright and sadness. Henry wished he could switch places with her. He was saddened as he watched her struggle against Hook's grip; the way her back was pressed against his chest as she tried to distance the hook away from her neck, the way her body trembled when he tightened his grip around her arm and the way that the corner's of Hook's lip rose when Violet pressed closer against him. Henry's stomach ached as he realized that Hook was happy to have a young girl's body pressed against his. In fact, Henry was overwhelmed, light headed and faintish.

He glanced down at the thermostat of tea placed by his bed on the floor. The tea was the first thing he had drunk in the last two days and the first time he had something hot to drink since he was captured by Hook five days ago. Henry reached down for the thermostat but decided against it. He needed to focus on Hook and decipher what kind of mood he was in. There was no way he could allow Hook to hurt Violet. The last thing the Savior's son wanted was to let a villain take advantage of a damsel in distress.

"Can you release her?" Henry finally asked.

Hook's reaction to Henry's question made him gulp. Henry's body quivered as if his insides were shaking. Maybe that's why Hook's reaction - a simple raise of the eyebrows - made Henry nervous. The image of Hook pressing the sharp part of his claw against her neck flashed through the boy's mind. The last thing that Henry wanted was to upset Hook into hurting Violet.

"Very well boy," he said as he let go of Violet.

Henry started moving towards Violet as she ran over to him. She yelled his name, the words were enunciated with such elegance and relief that it made the boy's heart flutter. He held her in his arms, she rested her head on his shoulders. It felt so good to hold her. He pulled away to look at her.

"You okay?" he whispered.

She nodded as a tear escaped from her deep brown eyes.

The two resumed hugging. This was the first time in five days that he talked to anyone that he cared about. He ran a hand through her dark hair, feeling the softness and fluffiness of her crown of glory. He felt her heart beating against his as if her heart was beating for both of them. It was like they shared one heart and she was the thing keeping him alive. This reminded him of Grandma and Grandpa. They literally shared a heart after Snow needed David's heart to make the curse to get the town back into Storybrooke. They always found each other no matter what happened. Their love could prevail in anything. Henry felt like his relationship with Violet was similar to his grandparents. That bond, connection, and romance were only available in fairytales. The love that gave people their happy ending.

The problem was that happy endings weren't real. Although his grandparents had an unbreakable form of love, they were always fighting something or trying to stay together. It wasn't a happy ending but a never-ending nightmare. All love did was give them the courage to get through it. At the age of thirteen, Henry knew that fairy tales were fiction but he also knew that love was a chain bending, a curse-breaking tool that saved so many of his family members. He wished that he could ask his grandparents for their definition of love. Too bad there was no way to contact his family to ask him what they really thought of love and a happy ending. Henry couldn't focus on doubt. The boy secretly wished that Violet's love would help him not only defeat Hook but survive long enough to be able to tell his grandkids the story of how Violet gave Henry the courage to beat Dark Hook.

He could picture himself sitting at Grandma's table with a cup of hot chocolate with cinnamon sprinkles in his hand. Grandpa would be sitting on his right, beaming that his grandson found love as strong as his. Snow would be leaning against the stove, sipping her cocoa while happily watching the two males interact. His mom would be standing at the door, impatiently waiting to take her son back to the manor, while having a grin on her face that her precious son was safe away from the pirate's grip. Emma would be sitting in her yellow bug outside of the apartment, watching from a distance - feeling relieved that he was safe. Then, Violet would be at her dad's house, excitedly waiting to meet Henry at Granny's cafe for a dinner date. And Neal would be looking down on him from heaven to see that his son was happily in love. 

The strawberry smell of Violet's hair made Henry remember that he was still stuck in the cabin on the Jolly Roger. The difference was that he had hope and Violet's love was the thing that gave it to him. Now he was going to get through this and get back to his family. Happy endings may not be real but Henry knew that as long as a person had love and family, they had the potential to be happy till the end.

"We're going to be okay," he whispered to Violet. He pulled back from their embrace to tell her the phrase again.

As Violet nodded, Henry heard his captor scoff. The boy peered over at the man, seeing him take a long pull from his flask before smiling and holding it out as a friendly gesture. Henry turned his attention back to Violet, wishing that the pirate would leave the two alone.

"Suit yourself," Hook said as he placed the flask back in his jacket.

Henry heard footsteps and thought that he was going to finally leave.

"I hate to break you lovebirds up but playtime is over," he said as he grabbed Violet's arm.

"Henry!" she yelled as Hook placed his hook back on her neck.

"You promised!" Henry shouted as he watched his girl being dragged closer to the door. "You said you wouldn't hurt her!" Henry started to walk over to them but he was overcome with dizziness and nearly fell back.

"Aye," the dark one answered. "I never said anything 'bout letting you bunk with her."

"How do I know you're going to keep your promise?"

Hook just smiled as if he was going to laugh. "You know, for the crocodile's grandson, you should really know to ask about the fine print."

He chuckled as he pushed Violet out the room with a thump. He held the doorknob with one hand, using his body to block the entrance. Henry assumed that he was holding Violet still by keeping his hook around her slender neck. The younger male considered charging out the door but realized that he didn't have the strength to do so. That could result in Hook hurting Violet. Also, they were on a ship and he had no idea how to safely escape. The best thing for the Savior's son to do was stay still, hoping that Hook would keep his promise and not hurt Violet.

It looked like he was about the exit but of course, Hook had to leave Henry with something that would get under his skin,

"Now if you want tips to woo your lady," he began to say. "That I could help you with." He raised his eyebrows in a suggestive way. "My peg leg isn't the only wood around."

Henry just stared.

"Don't look that way boy. That line helped me bed your mother."

With one more chuckle, the door to the room slammed shut with a thump. The sound of locks turning emitted through the room. Then there was a whisper and whimper. Henry used his last burst of energy to run over to the door to try to hear what Hook said. All he heard was a grunt and footsteps.

"Don't hurt her!" Henry yelled.

"Too late mate."

He yelled and pounded on the door until the footsteps were silenced. There were no more sounds for the rest of the day.

When Henry woke up the next day, he was surprised that he didn't hear anything - neither Hook shoveling around for a spare flask nor the rhythm of the waves that kept the Jolly Roger afloat. It was too quiet which terrified Henry. Thankfully he heard two seagulls squeaking and realized that the boat was just docked. Perhaps, Hook wasn't even here. It was logical that he would leave and then come back. Maybe Henry could find a way to communicate with Violet while the pirate was away.

He slowly got out of bed, grabbing his thermostat of tea from the day before. He took a sip and discovered that the tea was much colder than his thought. He guessed the thermostat only kept liquid warm for so long. He took a few sips, leaving the container half full since he wasn't sure when Hook would feed him next. He held the thermostat in his hand, thinking about all the thermostats and glass water bottles that Regina kept on the shelves at the manor.

He wished that the thermostat was glass so he could break it and use it as a weapon to defend himself. He would even settle for anything glass - even a beer bottle. Hook had plenty of bottles and it was probably easy to take one. Although Henry would like a weapon to feel safe, he would feel better if he knew his family was coming to get him. It had been six days already. Too bad that there was no way that he could communicate with them, even if was just a little message.

Before Henry could finish that thought, he heard a faint voice calling his name. He recognized it instantly. It was Violet.

"Violet!" he yelled as loud as he could.

"Henry!" she yelled. "I'm stuck in a room."

"Where?"

"It's the farthest one away from your room!"

"I'm going to get you out!"

"How?"

"I'm thinking of something."

There had to be a way that he could communicate with his family. Of all the magic he had been exposed to, there had to be some spell that could allow him to write a letter to Grandpa Charming. It surprised him that was the person he thought of writing to instead of his mom, Regina but there was something about his Grandpa that made him feel safer than anyone else. He wasn't sure why but it wasn't the time to think about that.

He remembered when he was younger he could communicate with Princess Aurora and his Grandma through his dreams because of the sleeping curse. He wasn't sure how to do that since it had been years since he attempted anything of that sort.

"There has to be something," he thought.

Unfortunately, his options were limited since this was the real world. There were no fairies that would appear in front of him, no stars to wish on or no princes or princess charming to rescue him. Henry hated thinking this especially since he couldn't rely completely on his family to just come for him. He had to tell them himself but how would he when he was stranded on a boat in probably the middle of nowhere

The rest of the day passed as Henry and Violet talked about things to distract each other from their situation. His voice was hoarse but talking to Violet made the day go faster. They would have talked until the night but Henry stopped when he heard the familiar click of boots. The second he heard him, Henry tasted a bitter feeling in his stomach. The reality of the situation was unmasked since the master had returned to his slave ship. His presence made the atmosphere feel heavy. Violet must have felt the way Henry did because she stopped talking the second Henry did. She must have felt so terrified when she heard him strutting across the ship, cursing under his breath while grabbing a bottle of rum from a shelf in the kitchen. The only thing Henry could hope for was that he would mess with neither him nor Violet tonight. Of course, Hook always had to interrupt Henry's imaginary pleasantness with an abrupt visit.

When he came into Henry's cabin, his eyes looked darker and they had a sulky quality to them. Something happened that made Hook sad. Was it a run in with Emma? Did he hurt her and regretted it? Or did the Charming-Mills team foil part of his plan? Henry assumed the latter by the lackluster quality of his entrance into the room.

"Time to uphold your deal," he said with a flat tone. "Need you to write for me."

Henry gulped as he nodded.

"And Violet-"

"Will forever remain safe."

"Good."

Henry was escorted out of the room and lead back into the living area with the table and foldout chairs. Hook gestured for him to sit in the seat closest to the liquor cabinet. He sat down, feeling his heart thump hard against his chest and his hands felt sweaty. He looked behind him and noticed all the bottles in the cabinet, wishing he would get his hands on one. Hook placed the apprentice pen and a blank storybook from the Apprentice's estate on the table. He opened the book and pointed at a blank page before sitting across from the young boy.

"This can't be a real pen," Henry announced as he picked up the pen. It looked exactly the same as the previous one. It felt just as light and had that tingle that a magical enhanced object usually had.

"It is."

"I broke mine."

"I know. I got Merlin to repair it while I was still good because I thought it was a mistake for you to break it."

"Oh."

"And if you think about breaking it, you're little-"

"I would never do anything to hurt her!"

"You get that from Emma's father."

Henry thought it was interesting that Hook kept bringing up the qualities that were similar to his other relatives. People usually did that to connect with people. Why would a man that kidnapped him want to connect with him?"

"Let's cut to the chase boy," Hook said. "I need you to write that I am the leader of the dark ones, they bind to my will and that I am the only one that can hurt you."

This didn't make sense to Henry. First of all, why would Hook want to be the leader of the dark ones when Emma was the only other person that currently possessed darkness. He wanted to control Emma. What did he plan to make her do? Henry wasn't on best terms with Emma, he forgave her for ripping out Violet's heart but he wouldn't let Hook hurt her. The last part of Hook's statement was interesting since he wanted to be the only one that could hurt Henry. What was the purpose of that? Whatever Hook was planning Henry didn't like and he especially didn't like that his plan was to hurt Emma.

"But my mom -" Henry started to say.

"That wasn't part of the deal!" Hook said as he slammed his fist down on the table. The book bounced as Henry's heart jumped. Hook moved his face closer to Henry and sneered while saying, "Unless you rather have Emma and I'll take Violet to my bedroom -"

"NO!"

"That's what I thought, now write."

Henry took a deep breath as held the pen over the page. The pen was trembling in his hand, the ink smearing when it pressed down on the page. He started forming letters, trying to keep his writing neat while his eyes began watering, making it harder to see. This was something he never wanted to happen. If he was bargaining over his life, he would have rather died then do this. There was no way that he could justify letting Violet die to preserve goodness. However, he was letting Hook have his way with his mother. He was halfway through writing when he thought about how it was wrong to sacrifice Emma's life to save Violet's. Then, a really bad thought crossed his mind. Would he make the same choice if it was Regina's life over Violet's? The fact that he wasn't sure scared him because that meant that he didn't love his moms the same. The realization made him more guilty about his decision because he owed it to Emma to love her as she deserved. And now he may never get a chance. Hook was going to pay ten folds for harming his mother. Henry would avenge her and do whatever he could to save her. The least he could do was warn her. He needed to find a way to communicate with her before it was too late. Then, he let a tear roll down his cheek.

He looked away as Hook seized the book to study the writing to ensure that Henry wasn't trying to be funny with him. While Hook was preoccupied, Henry looked down at the floor, noticing an empty bottle with the corkscrew still intact. An idea flashed through his mind and he put the bottle under his pants leg and placing the slender part in his shoe to keep the bottle from rattling when he walked. Now he just needed paper and a regular pen.

Hook made the book and pen disappear before standing up to go to Henry. He pulled Henry up and started leading him back to his quarters.

"Can I at least write a goodbye letter to Emma?" he asked. "No secret code. I just need to tell her I love her one last time."

Hook seemed to consider his request.

"Fine. But if you try anything." He pointed to the back of the ship and said, "She dies."

"I would never do -"

"I get it. Sit back down."

Henry walked over to the table as a pad and pen appeared in front of him. He immediately tore two sheets off the pad and pretended to start jotting down a letter.

"The pen isn't working." Henry lied.

Hook rolled his eyes as he made a second pen appear. He pulled out his flask as Henry placed the spare paper and pen on his lap. As he started writing, he used his spare hand to stick the paper and pen into his pocket. Once he was done he handed the letter to Hook.

"Mom, I love you and I want you to know that you have always been my role model," Hook read. "I forgave you for ripping out Violet's heart. I believe there it is still good in you. I want you to get your happy ending. Love, Henry."

Henry's heart pounded as he watched the way Hook intensely stared at the paper.

"Seems fine," he said.

Henry felt relieved as he went back to his room. He waited until he thought Hook had left. He took out the pen and the sheet and started scribbling down details. He knew it was only a matter of time before Hook realized that he took the extra pen and paper. He wrote down all the details he could before sticking it in the bottle and sealing it with the corkscrew. He walked over to the small window that he could barely reach and stuck the bottle through the black vertical bars. It barely fit but he managed to push it through the window with a thump. He heard it land into the water with a thump. One thing about bottle messages was that they were inherently magic and would always get to the person it was intended for. Henry knew his rescue was going to be soon. He was going to hide the pen but realize that Hook may have thought he kept it as a weapon. He decided to throw the pen overboard since he didn't want to do anything to jeopardize Violet's safety.

Henry laid in his bed and for the first time in six days, he went to sleep with a smile on his face.


	5. Chapter 5

On the seventh day of Henry's capture, he was a little surprised that he felt content. He knew that it was because of the letter he sent to Grandpa Charming through the bottle message. Yesterday, he was able to hold his girl in his arms and comfort her, and those two things gave him some hope. The thing that bothered him was the statement that Hook had Henry to write with the author's pen. The pirate was going to try to hurt Emma so Henry could only hope that Grandpa received the bottle message in enough time to warn her. The Savior's son would have preferred to send the message directly to his mother but it was likely that Hook would have found the message before she did. There was no way that Hook wasn't watching Emma. A bottled message would lead him to rightfully guess that Henry had figured out how to get in contact with his mother. Then, Hook would hurt Violet since Henry betrayed his trust.

Speaking of Violet, Henry was looking forward to seeing her. He just wanted to hold her and hold onto her as long as he could. There was no telling what Hook was going to do to the two teenagers. As much as Henry wanted to believe that Hook wouldn't hurt them, he knew Hook would do anything to prove just how evil he was.

When Hook invited himself into Henry's cabin, Henry was determined to see his girl. Hook had his usual charming smile plastered on his face, the type of grin that could have easily been mistaken for flirting. The younger male just assumed that the elder was happy since Hook probably felt like he won the battle. Henry had previously used his author’s pen to write that the former sailor was both the leader of the dark ones and that he had the power to control them. Since the captor was in a swell mood, Henry was not afraid to ask if he could see Violet.

"Can I see her?" he asked as he kept his eyes on the planks underneath his feet. The last thing he wanted was for the puss in boots to feel that Henry was challenging his authority just by staring.

Although Henry knew that Hook could deny his request, he did not see any reason for the older man not to allow the younger to see his almost-girlfriend. Besides, Henry obeyed Hook's commands and it seemed like a fair request. Hook had stolen the boy away from his family and friends. The only person that the Mayor's son had was Violet. As previously stated, she gave him hope and he knew that if he could just see her, he would have the strength to endure his captivity. Maybe that's why it was alarming when the dark one firmly said, "No." The boy gulped as the image of Violet's dainty wrist cuffed to a wall appeared in his mind. He pictured her tear-stained cheeks and could practically hear her faint mumbles, imagining that her voice was hoarse from shouting out his name. His face began feeling hot as he tried shaking off the thoughts of Violet being locked somewhere within the Jolly Rogers. Without thinking, his fist balled as he dared to ask...

"What did you do to her?"

Hook stared at him for a second as an expression of rage flashed across his face. There was something about that look that made Henry take a step back. Then, Hook's face contorted into a new expression and his eyes seemed to soften. The change in expression made Henry's heart palpitate since he expected that Hook was about to do something that put the poor boy back into his place. The last time Hook forced Henry back into submission was when he starved the teen for two whole days. Those were some of the hardest days of his captivity. Hook must have forgiven Henry's small outburst since he no longer seemed angry. In fact, he looked rather calm as he replied to Henry's question.

"Nothing,” the pirate said nonchalantly. He turned towards the door, motioned with his hand as he said, “Now come along lad."

Henry was once again led back to the table that was near the liquor cabinet. He sat at his usual spot, which made him sad knowing that he had been captured long enough to have his own seat at Hook's table. He glanced around the room, noticing that behind him was a ladder that appeared to lead to the deck. He was sure that the ladder was not there before. He would have tried escaping if he saw it. Hook had to conceal the ladder with magic or he must have placed something in front of the ladder before. If that was so, then why did Hook decided to unveil the ladder today?

Henry could not even finish processing that thought when Hook sat across from him and placed two liquor glasses down on the table. An alarm went off in Henry's head when he realized that Hook wanted to celebrate with Henry by getting him drunk. The boy had turned down the alcohol last time but this time he would take a sip to seem agreeable with Hook. He didn't want to do anything that would make Hook suspect that Henry had contacted his family. Henry watched as the dark one poured a brown liquid into both of the glasses. The thirteen-year-old assumed that it was rum.

"Will you have a drink with me?" Hook asked.

"Fine," he responded.

Hook raised up his glass and signaled that both males should take a drink. Henry raised the glass to his mouth and started to put it back down once he thought of how disappointed both his moms would be if they knew he was about to drink. He noticed Hook was watching him and decided that he only needed to take a sip. He raised the glass back up to his lips, tipping the cup a little until his tongue tasted the bitter liquid in the glass. The taste was so strong that it felt like it would have burned the tip of his tongue. He immediately plopped the glass back onto the table. He raised his arm up to his mouth and swiped his tongue against his sleeve.

"Why do people like this stuff?" Henry asked.

The rum was so disgusting that Henry could not rationalize why adults enjoyed drinking liquor and alcohol. Why would someone want to regularly consume something that did not taste good? He was aware that drinks could affect someone’s mood and mindset but that did not seem like a good enough reason to drink. He thought about the times when he saw his moms drink. He had seen Regina sip wine plenty of times before and he had watched Emma gulp down a pint of whiskey a few times. Maybe there was a difference in taste between wine and whiskey. Regina seemed to enjoy the wine she poured for herself during dinner while Emma usually drank after a particularly hard day. The one thing Henry knew for sure about alcohol was that he wasn’t going to drink ever again.

He stared at the rum while thinking about why Hook regularly drank when he realized that the man did not answer his question. That seemed odd to Henry since Hook had wanted Henry to drink so it seemed like he should have been thrilled to talk about drinking with him. The boy looked up at his captor and noticed that he was looking down at his glass, watching the rum in his cup swish back and forth. Something was off.

“Hook?” Henry asked, making the pirate look up at him.

"Henry,” Hook started. “Prince Henry. After all, your mum is a queen. You know, you could be the prince of this town."

Henry's eyes widened at the phrasing of Hook’s statement. He seemed serious when he used the word “prince.” There were many words that Henry associated himself with like the Mayor’s son, Savior’s son and a hero. Not once has he ever called himself a prince. When his family was in Camelot, Grandpa Charming had mentioned Henry’s prince status to him, emphasizing that he was a prince since both of his grandparents were royalty. He had brushed it off when the elder male told him this and he even lightly mocked the word “prince” by laughing. There were a few times when he was younger when Regina called him her little prince especially when she was in a good mood. She would pick him up, comment that he was getting heavy and tell him how he’ll be the king of a magical kingdom. That was something she had rarely said and she did not remember saying it when Henry asked about the memory as he grew older. Regardless, Henry never really accepted his title as prince although he knew very well he was one.

That did not explain why the newest dark one was calling out the boy’s nobility. Was it suppose to raise his spirits and make him feel better about his capture? If that was Hook’s plan, that was not going to happen anytime soon. Although Henry was getting used to the idea of being a slave to his mother’s ex-boyfriend, he was not going to be overjoyed about it. Besides, why would Hook care if Henry was happy or not? He had to be trying to butter Henry up to get him to do something else like writing something with the Author’s Pen again.

"Dark one is trying to make a deal I see,” Henry commented.

Maybe that was the reason why the ladder was visible. Hook could make a deal that gave Henry his freedom in exchange for something. The idea of being back at the estate with Regina made the corners of his mouth rise. He missed her so much and wanted to give her the biggest hug that he ever gave her. He missed spending time with Robinhood and Rowan. Just sitting together, playing scramble before Henry went off to spend the night with Grandpa and Grandma at the apartment. That’s what Henry missed most of all. He missed his family so much whether if it was his family at the manor or his family at the loft. Regardless if it was the Mills or the Charmings, he missed them all. At this moment, Henry would have done anything to go back to his family.

Henry watched as Hook took a swig of his rum, taking a long pull before setting an empty glass down. He poured himself another drink and then proceeded to pour more into Henry’s glass but there was only so much he could add to an already full cup. Hook instructed Henry to drink and Henry once again took another small sip of his drink. Then, Hook made him take a real sip much to Henry’s dismay. The rum tasted worse as he forced himself to swallow it. When he thought it was over, Hook commanded Henry to finish the glass. The liquid burned his throat as he forced himself to swallow the bitter drink. The only thing Henry could compare the rum to was vinegar. His chest began burning as he finished off the glass.

“Good lad,” Hook praised. “You want to know what I was referring to. Don’t you?”

“I’m sure you had a reason to call me prince,” Henry pointed out.

“Aye, I did,” Hook stated as he nudged his head in the direction of the ladder. “Have a look outside.”

Outside? Did the dark one just tell him to walk over to the ladder, climb up and go onto the deck? Hook had kept Henry in the ship for a week and not once had he took the boy up to the deck. Of all of the days that Henry had been there, why did he pick this day to allow Henry a breath of fresh air? Henry had just fulfilled Hook's request of using the Author's pen and now he wanted Henry to go on to the deck. Dark Hook never did anything without a purpose. What was so important that Henry needed to go onto the deck to see? He nearly gasped as he thought about how Hook did not permit him to see Violet. What if he had her chained to a pole on the deck and was going to threaten to send her overboard if Henry disobeyed him? If Violet was all alone on the deck, Henry definitely needed to see her and rescue her.

He stood up, surprised that he could feel the blood rushing to his head as he took a step away from the table. He looked at Hook for a second, trying to see if the older man was going to trick him. The dark one nodded as if he was telling Henry to continue walking. The boy, unsure of what to do, stood frozen for a second as he eyed the ladder. Was Hook about to let him go? Or was he going to push him overboard? If he planned on ending Henry's life, that would explain the reason that Hook forced Henry to drink. It seemed unlikely that he would try to kill him since Hook had no reason to. He already had Violet to force Henry to obey him.

Henry took a deep breath and then exhaled, hoping that the ladder did not lead to his and Violet's death. He grabbed onto the edge of the ladder's step that was above his head. He immediately felt dirt underneath his fingertips, half-wishing that an Englishmen like Hook would have wiped down the ladder before telling Henry to climb it. It was not like Hook allowed Henry to wash his hands. He placed his foot on one of the steps, rising up before placing his other foot on the same one. He started climbing up, keeping his eyes on what he called a sunroof, which actually was just the opening that he had to climb through to get onto the deck. The rays of the sun were shining down on him as he moved up the ladder.

When he finally made it to the top, he was immediately blinded by the sunlight. He squinted his eyes to shield away from the bright light. With his head down, he cautiously placed his hands on the deck's floor, using his arms to pull himself off the ladder and onto the deck. When both of his feet were planted on the ground, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath in, letting the sea-scented air into his body before letting it all out. He could feel the alcohol begin rushing to his head, making him feel a bit "out of it." He opened his eyes and took a step towards the middle of the deck. He turned his head to glance around the deck and saw nothing out of the ordinary. What did Hook want him to see?

He slowly walked towards the edge of the ship. All he saw was the ocean in front of him and on both of his sides. Did Hook plan on pushing him overboard? If so, that would explain why Hook made Henry drink since the rum would lessen the pain of choking on water. The drink had definitely gone to his head, he realized, since he was thinking at a slower rate. Just one pint of rum was too much for the poor boy. Even Henry was surprised how quickly he felt a buzz. The alcohol worked faster since Henry did not really have much to eat. In Henry's tipsy state, he stared at the riffles in the oceans for a second too long until he finally realized something. Standing near the edge of the Jolly Roger was not the smartest decision, especially when he suspected that he would be pushed overboard. Almost on cue, he heard the sound of soft footsteps coming from behind, which made him think that Hook was about to push him overboard. Instinctively, he spun around and then he saw it.

His heartbeat pounded across his chest as he started walking towards the opposite side of the ship, stopping midway to fall to his knees. No words could describe the horror that the young boy was witnessing. At first, he was completely silent. No amount of liquid courage could help reduce the pain he was feeling. Then, his strong facade dropped and all his could do was let tears drip from his eyes. The world spun around as Henry fell face down onto the deck. Hook won. Hook won! There were no such things as happily ever after. The villain won.

Something made Henry push himself back to his feet and turn around to face the man that destroyed nearly everything that Henry loved. Henry thought about glaring, or pushing or even calling Hook a name that he never thought he would say. All he could do was allow another tear to slide down his face and say ...

"What did you do?"

Hook just smiled, his mouth beaming with glee as he pointed to the tragedy behind Henry. On command, Henry turned back around and felt the wind kicked out of him once again as he laid eyes on Hook's victory. He fell back to his knees as he stared at his hometown in the distance. Storybrooke looked so far away but he could still make out the shapes of the buildings in the town. The boy helplessly watched the dancing red flames that consumed the city, the gray smoke that engulfed the air and the dark skies that yielded no light. The city must have been so filled with ashes and smoke that it blocked out the sun from shining down. It must have happened so fast that no one had a chance to escape. Everyone had to either be dead, covering in burns or suffocating from the smoky air. No one would have expected the total destruction of the town. Not even his family. They had to be dead, all of them. There could be a chance that Emma would still be alive but it would not be for long.

As he sobbed, loneliness washed over him, consuming his every fiber. This was a feeling that he had not experienced since Emma moved to Storybrooke. Now the feeling was intensified. His family had to be dead. Now he was an orphan. All he had left was Violet but he was sure that Hook would take her away from him as well. The only thing Henry could wish was that he was with his family. He would rather be dead than be the only Charming-Mills alive.

Henry felt a light touch on his shoulder and shrugged Hook's hand off. Henry did not care if that made Hook angry. The last thing he needed was the dark one pretending to sympathize with him after killing everyone he knew and loved. All Henry could think about was how much his captor deserved to suffer for the deaths of his family. It did not matter why the pirate destroyed the town and the reason Hook needed Henry no longer mattered. What matter was that his family needed justice for the crime that was committed against him.

Although the motive or action was no longer important, Henry still was a little shocked when he heard ...

"I released all the dark ones,” Hook replied softly. He was quiet for a few minutes and then asked, "Aren't you going to ask about your family?"

For a split second, Henry became hopeful that his family was okay.

"Is my family -" the boy started.

"Dead by morning," Hook interrupted with such enthusiasm that it made the Savior's son jump up and turn towards the murder.

"How could you!" Henry yelled right into Hook's face, no longer caring about the repercussions of disrespecting the dark one. "You killed them all!" He started choking on his tears as he said, "M-my moms! Grandma and Grandpa. Baby Neil. Belle -"

Then, Hook's face turned to an unreadable expression as he said, "Love, you need to get over it."

Before Henry went ballistic, the world began to fade into black. He took a step back, still choking on his tears as the world disappeared while Henry's body fainted onto the hard wooden floor.

* * *

  
Henry laid on his stomach, with his body half-leaning off the bed as the image of the ruins of Granny's dinner flashed through his mind. He had been awake for the last couple of hours and the only thing he could think of was seeing remnants of clothes like Rudy's red cloak or Baby Neal's Bonnet buried in piles of ashes. He imagined his family running into Regina's secret vault in the cemetery, envisioning Grandma Snow panicking with Neal in her arms while his mom frantically searched for spells. He already could see Grandpa Charming trying to rescue people from burning buildings. No matter how hard he tried, people still died. Belle would be stuck in the library, passed out from inhaling smoky puffs of airs as the shelves filled with books made the fire's flame grow wider. Grandpa Rumple, who was still comatose in his bed, his flesh charring as the shop was surrounded by the crimson waves of destruction. And Aunt Zelena would be sobbing loudly in the basement of the hospital, listening to the screams of other patients as she frantically tried to remove the bracelet that prevented her magic. Worse of all, Emma would be standing on a hill, her gray hair pinned in a bun, a single tear running down her face as Hook forced her to watch the murder of Storybrooke and all its inhabitants. He would be laughing, smiling before he told her that Henry used the Author's pen to give him power over the dark ones. Her eye widened, mouth opened to plea just before Hook commanded her to find her mother, rip the princess heart out and then do the same to Regina. All Emma would think was that everything was her fault. But that was not even remotely true. This was all Henry's fault.

A thirteen-year-old boy would be responsible for the loss of hundreds of lives, including his family's since he was too weak to do the right thing. He should have never agreed to use the pen to give Hook more power and control. He should have made the hard choice, which was to forfeit both his and Violet's life to save innocent people. This was something that neither one of the Charmings would have taught him. He could already hear Emma telling him that Henry's only responsibility was to save himself and Violet. Grandma Snow would have given him a hug and told him it was unfair for Hook to put him in that situation and Grandpa Charming would have said it is their responsibility to look after Henry, not the other way around. He knew that if his grandparents were in that situation, they would look at each other, tell each other that they would find the other in the afterlife and save the entire time. Emma, on the other hand, would have focused on keeping Henry safe at all costs. At that moment, Henry realized his biological family did not practice what they preach. The ideal hero they taught Henry to be was not the type of hero they were. They made it so that Henry will always far short in comparison. He was a victim of impropering teaching and that cost the lives of many.

As he tilted his head towards the floor, feeling nauseous from the alcohol he consumed earlier, he wondered what would have happened if he never went to Boston to find Emma. Of course, his life would have been boring since he was living the same day over and over again. Yet, the destruction of Storybrooke would have never happened. Everyone would be alive. Then, he would not have had Emma and even though he did not like what she did to Violet, he loved her so much. That was a stupid idea. What he should do is go back to when the original curse was broken when Regina offered the ten-year-old Henry magic lessons. If he would have said yes, he would have been able to fight against Hook. He could have rescued Violet and the two could have escaped to New York and stayed in Neal's apartment until things cooled down.

That was wishful thinking. A clear sign that there was still some hope left inside of him. A part of him felt like he should change that. If happy endings only exist in books, then maybe hope was only useful in the Enchanted Forest. In this realm, those two things only served to weaken Henry. He was not sure what his next move was going to be but all he knew was that he had to make himself tougher and that required letting go of some of the Charming family values.

After several hours of being alone, Henry heard the familiar sound of keys jingling and locks turning. He groaned as he dreadfully waited to see his captor peak his head into the room. Hook, flamboyant as usual, opened the door as if it was such a grand gesture, and flashed one of his signature smiles at Henry. The way he walked into the room, acting as if he expected Henry to jump up and hug him, angered the teen. Henry felt something very intense, something thick and warm bubbled up inside his chest. This - this heat was something he had been feeling lately since Hook kidnapped him. Henry was not sure what emotion he was experiencing. He could call it anger but it felt worse than anger. It felt like he could hurt someone and not care about who he hurt. Just seeing Hook, made him feel like he wanted the dark one ... well ... dead. And a part of Henry wanted to be the one that - that took the pirate off the earth. The Englishmen murdered hundreds of people, including Henry's family members. Taking Hook's life would not be revenge, but vengeance.

Henry felt the heat become hotter as Hook strutted over to him and sat beside him on his bed. All of those negative feelings and evil thoughts filled the Savior's son mind. Eight days ago, he would have never imagined that he would be capable of thinking such thoughts. Heck, eight days ago, he still wondered how his moms allowed evil to have its way with them. Now he understood why Regina became mad after her first love died or why Emma embraced her darkness. It was not because they were cowards or that they weren't strong enough to resist the seduction of evilness. That heat - that intense anger coupled with the feeling of being unjustly treated drove them towards to darker side. If he ever got a chance to see his moms again, he would apologize for judging them and tell them he understood why they made the choices they did.

He was certain they would understand the choices that he was gearing up to make. Although Henry had yet to form a concrete plan, there was one thing that was certain; that it was foolish to be blinded by hope since it was likely that the man in front of Henry would end his life. In fact, the dark one was just prolonging the inevitable.

Henry rolled onto his back, looked up at Hook and stared into that dark eyes, showing him that he was not afraid of him.

"Are you going to kill me next?" Henry asked. He surprised himself how nonchalantly he sounded.

"Kill you?" Hook asked. Henry's tone must have surprised Hook as well. "No."

There was that familiar small burst of light that began to appear in the midst of the heat that was inside Henry's chest. He knew what he was feeling. It was hope. Although he knew he needed to get rid of that emotion, he could not stop himself from wishfully thinking that maybe he and Violet could get out of this alive.

"Can you let me and Violet go?" he asked before adding, "It's not like the dark ones can hurt me?"

Hook paused for a minute and then his facial expression changed to a more serious one. This scared Henry to the point that he sat up, despite being dizzy, and pressed himself against the wall to give himself some space. It was not that much but even a little distance made himself feel safer.

"Do you really think you can stomach seeing everyone you know killed? " Hook asked. "Speaking of stomach..." he paused as he reached into the inner pocket of his jacket and pulled out a small bottle filled with white pills before saying, "here."

He held the bottle out to Henry and Henry took it from Hook's only hand. The boy held the bottle up and noticed that there was no label.

"What's this?" he asked. "Poison?"

Hook chuckled for a second as if it was silly for Henry to think that the pirate would poison him.

"Aspirin," he replied. "Helps for the hangovers. Unless you rather drink some more?"

"No!" Henry quickly said, which made Hook laugh. "I rather take it."

Henry opened the bottle and then started inspecting the pills. He raised the bottle to his nose to smell the pills. Nothing seemed off. He licked his finger, placed his wet finger on one of the pills and felt the familiar powdery feeling of aspirin. He took one out, held it out to Hook and before he got a chance to say something, Hook immediately took it and stuck his tongue out to show he swallowed it. After a few more seconds of hesitation, Henry finally popped two into his mouth.

"That a boy," Hook praised.

Henry raised his eyebrows but decided not to address the comment. While Hook was in a pleasant mood, Henry decided he should take advantage of that. One thing that Henry had at his disposal is that Hook assumed that Henry was too trusting and too naive to be capable of saving him and Violet. Now since Henry's family was gone, he had to do whatever he could to save Violet and him. That was his new goal now. To get far away from Hook, take Violet to his father's apartment in New York and restart their lives together.

"What else do you want with me? " Henry asked in an assertive tone. "You got what you wanted. Please let us go. Violet is -"

"She's okay," Hook interrupted him and he sounded a bit annoyed from Henry's previous statement. "Wanna see her?"

Before Henry could reply, Hook walked out of Henry's cabin, leaving the door open. He heard Hook began walking away and then heard the sound of chains jingling. Without even thinking, Henry stood up, the blood rushing to his head as his legs wobbled over to the entrance. Could this be his opportunity to leave? He could run and - That was a stupid thought since Henry knew that the Jolly Rogers was docked in the middle of the ocean. He could not escape if he wanted to. Now since his family and the town was gone, there was no one that he could call for help. Violet and he were stuck on the ship unless Hook decided to let them go. And that seemed unlikely. Henry took a few steps away from the door, half-wishing he could look at himself in the mirror. It had been days since he washed his face or showered. His hair was muddled into a greasy mess. Then again, Violet probably looked the same. Henry heard footsteps coming closer, more footsteps this time. Henry peaked his head out the door and saw Hook, pulling Violet along by a firm hand on her shoulder, coming down the hallway.

"Violet!" he yelled as he ran to her.

"Henry!" she yelled back, pulling away from Hook and running towards him.

The two met in an embrace, holding onto each other for dear life sake. Henry pulled back to look at Violet.

"Did he -?" he asked, letting his words trail off.

"I'm okay," she reassured. "He kept his promise."

Through the corner of Henry's eyes, he could see the corners of Hook's mouth rise. The only thing Henry could think was something bad was about to happen. He grabbed Violet's hand, squeezing it tight as he turned towards the murderer. Hook just smiled, showing off his pearly white teeth as he opened his mouth to say something. Henry expected him to contradict Violet's statement but he didn't. He couldn't. He glared off into the distance before mumbling a phrase of curse words. Henry's heart pounded in his chest as he tried to understand what was happening. Something had made Hook scared or worried. Could it be that Henry's family was about to rescue him or could it be that the released dark ones were rebelling against their leader?

Before Henry could evaluate the situation, Violet screamed as the room turned pitch black, which made Hook curse and summon his magical red hurricane to teleport him away. Henry stood frozen, his head pounding from the hangover, as he realized how dangerous the situation was. Hook would not have left them alone with the door unlock to the rest of the ship if Henry was about to be rescued. That meant that Henry and Violet were about to be killed by something worse than Hook. While holding Violet's hand, he started pulling her out the room, running into the hallway and towards the lit outer area where the liquor cabinet. This was his chance to leave and escape. This was his chance to free Violet and him. This would probably be their only chance to escape and if they missed this opportunity, Henry knew that both he and Violet would be tortured and then violently killed.


	6. Chapter 6

Henry began frantically trying to move the bookcase. Earlier that day, the ladder to the deck had been in the same place where the shelf was. If he could somehow summon the strength to pull a nailed bookcase from the wall, he would in order to save himself and Violet from whatever was about to enter the ship and kill them. As he gave the shelf another tug, he called Violet over to help him. He explained his reasoning for trying to pull it out yet Violet advised against it, saying that if two thirteen-year-olds could pull the shelf off the wall, it would damage the ship and send sea water gushing in. Henry agreed that his idea was not only stupid and dangerous but a waste of time. They decided to search for weapons instead. Violet began looking for knives in the small kitchen area that was on the left side of the outer living space. Henry knew that they didn't have enough time to look for something sharp. The best thing he could do was make a weapon himself. He opened the liquor cabinet, grabbed a beer bottle and walked over to the metal fold-out table. He smashed the bottle against the edge of the table, sending alcohol and shards of glass everywhere. He held the bottle up, satisfied that he finally had something that could protect himself and Violet.

Before he could look for anything else, the boat began filling with purple smoke. He immediately recognized the smoke as magical and perhaps could have been gas to knock the two unconscious. Henry immediately ran over to Violet grabbing her hand as the two ran towards the back of the boat. With the broken bottle in his hand, he guided Violet back into his cabin and closed the door before the smoke was able to enter his room. Violet pulled the sheet off Henry's bed and stuffed it under the cracks of the door to prevent smoke from coming in.

Henry wanted to say that this would have kept them safe but he knew it would not. He thought about standing right in front of the door just in case someone came in and he could hit them with the bottle but he sided against it. What if someone had a weapon and shot at the door? That would immediately end his life. There was safety in distance. He walked to the farthest end of his room and sat on the floor with his back against the wall. Violet soon joined him, grabbing his free hand and resting his head against his. Henry had to admit that it was nice having her near him. If he was killed at that very moment, at least he would not have to die alone.

Most people in Henry's situation would have been crying or praying, bargaining with the superior powers for another opportunity to live. Henry was never the type of person to beg for his life or to fear death. When he was ten years old, he took a bite of the poisonous desert, the one Regina had intended to use on Emma, without worrying if he would ever wake up again. When he was twelve, he was willing to sacrifice his life to save the lost boys. The idea of being a martyr had always seemed like an attractive idea to him. Death was no longer this abstract concept of martyrdom for him. After spending several days under the wrath of the newest dark one, the Savior's son had a new perspective of death. Now martyrdom was just men putting a positive of a spin on suicide. Martyrs did not rescue people from burning buildings or stop demon-possessed men from destroying towns. What people needed was a hero that took action and did what was necessary to take out the monster. What good did a dead hero do for anyone?

Maybe that's why Emma decided to allow the darkness to consume her because she knew that the only way to fight evil was to become evil. The problem that most people had was that they could not find a balance between evil and good. Grandpa Rumple excelled when he stood at the midpoint between light and darkness. He was confident, rarely arrogant, and unafraid of anyone. He was able to still love his family yet still defeat any of the villains he conquered. Maybe that's who Henry needed to be like. He needed to embrace darkness without letting it control him.

As he sat in his cabin waiting for the next "thing" to try to hurt him, he realized the errors of his ways. He had been so focused on giving his life to save the town that he didn't realize that was exactly what killed the town. He had been so foolish to rely on the hope that he didn't realize how it blinded him from the truth. He should have been colder and more calculated. He had been weakened by the fact that Emma had betrayed him by pulling out Violet's heart. He should have known that Hook was expecting him to be weak, passive-aggressive and defiant. Hook even knew that Henry would willingly give his life which was why he brought Violet since he knew that Henry would never bargain someone else's life. If he would have been more perceptive, he would have seen what Hook was doing and would have given up Violet's life for the life of his families.

Henry turned his head towards the girl that rested her head against the shoulders. It seemed quite wicked to think that he should have traded her life for someone else's especially since she was right next to him. She trusted him so much and he did feel responsible to protect her. Was she worth the life of everyone in Storybrooke? No. He still wasn't even sure if she loved him.

It was time for Henry to change the way he thought and the way he acted. If he was the only one left to defeat Hook, he had to prepare himself. It was not like he could rely on his family. They probably did not get the message he sent through the bottle. Heck, they were probably dead or almost dead. No, they were dead. Henry no longer could use hope as an excuse to deny logic. It was up to him to take care of himself. He was not a little kid anymore. He was nearly fourteen years old, only a few years away from being an adult. It was not like he was not smart enough or not responsible enough or not powerful enough. In fact, he could very well be more powerful than Hook.

A smile grew wide on Henry's face. He had the power of the Author's Pen and could use it to get rid of Hook and the Dark One's for good. Henry forgot that he was the heir of an all-powerful family. His biological mom was a fearless, independent woman who was able to take care of herself as an orphan, spend time in jail and still be the Savior of an entire nation. He was also the grandson of Prince Charming and Snow White, two fierce warriors that weren't afraid to fight anything. His father was able to still have love in his heart after being abandoned by two selfish parents, then he spent time with a pitiful pirate before being thrust into the real world without any help or guidance. Somehow, he was able to make a life for himself and afford a nice place in one of the most expensive places in America. Next, his Grandpa Rumple, a coward from birth, seized the opportunity for power and rebuilt himself to be one of the most respected and feared creatures in both the Enchanted Forest and Storybrooke. His drunken father, Pan, metamorphized into a child and became the wicked leader of a bunch of lost boys. That is not even counting his adopting family. His mom, Regina, who was once pure and full of love, married a king and became an all-powerful queen, then the fierce mayor of Storybrooke and still maintained being all-powerful as she became good. His Grandma Cora, the queen of hearts, was a fierce queen who did what she thought was the best to ensure that her family would be powerful. How could Henry look at his family tree and not see that he deserved to be powerful? It was his birthright.

Henry decided that he was no longer going to be just the son of the Savior and the son of the once renowned Evil Queen. He was going to make a name for himself. This was his opportunity to stop being just the son and become the protagonist of the story. With his Author's Pen, he was going to take full advantage of his power and create a new reality for himself. Out with the nice guy and in with the guy who wasn't afraid to make the hard decisions.

As he sat deep in thought, the room started filling with the same purple smoke that had driven them out of the outer living space. He released Violet's hand and stood up, knowing that this was his time to prove himself and attack the thing that was evading his space. Before he could thrust the broken bottle in his hand, he realized what was going on. His eyes soften and Violet joined him at his side.

As the figure began forming before them, the only thing he could think of was that he was finally going home. This was his rescue. He would not have to give up his virtue to free him and his girl. He smiled once the figure fully materialized. She was now standing before him, dressed in a black turtleneck, black dress slacks and her dark hair was a mess all over her head. Her face was covered in scratches and she had bags under her eyes.

"MOM!" Henry yelled, running up to his mother to embrace up.

His hands went right through her body, making him frown since he realized it was a projection. He hadn't seen her in eight days and didn't realize how much he had missed her until now. At least, he knew that one of his mothers was okay. He was glad to know that he still had someone out there that loved him. When he escaped, he was going to make sure that he brought his mom with him.

"Henry!" Regina called back. "There's no time."

Henry could hear loud noises in the background and he knew that they must have been hiding underground in the mine. A part of him felt like he should have been with her. He should be with his family just in case that was their last moment together. Thinking like that was going to make him upset. He settled for just enjoying hearing her voice.

"Henry!" he heard Snow's voice yelled. "Is he okay?"

Snow was alive? Henry felt so relieved knowing that his grandparents were okay. It had hurt him thinking that his family was dead. Although he could not see Snow, he assumed that she was standing nearby while his mom projected to her son.

Regina turned her head as if Snow was right behind her and said, "He's fine."

If only Henry could tell them that he was not fine. That he gave up on hope and goodness. He could not break their hearts. He needed to tell them where he was at.

"Hook kidnapped me and Vio-" Henry started to before he was interrupted by his mother.

"I know," she said. "Emma told me. Henry, listen to me before he comes back. You are safer where you are at. Listen to Hook and stay calm. Emma and I will rescue you when we get everything under control here."

His mother was doing that thing when she was treating him like a kid. He obviously knew more than they thought he did.

"I know that Storybrooke is destroyed," Henry said. "How many people are alive? I need to know if Hook is telling the truth or not."

Regina paused for a second and turned her head. She must have looked back at Snow for reassurance.

"Henry, it's just me, Snow and Emma," she said solemnly.

"And Grumpy," Snow added. "Tell him that Emma pleaded with Hook to spare children."

Henry began feeling numb. He knew that most of the people he loved were gone but it still hurt knowing that he would never see them again. Wait, his mother didn't mention anything about Grandpa Charming? Maybe she forgot to say his name. That would not have made sense since Grandma Snow would have said it. Henry shook his head and realized he was allowing hope to blind him once again. Still, he needed to ask.

"What about Grandpa?"

He heard Snow stifle a sob.

"I'm sorry Henry," Regina said. "He was able to give your letter to Prince Phillip before he ... he wouldn't want you to be sad, Henry."

"Neither do I," added Snow.

"Hang in tight," Regina said. "We will rescue you."

"Uh ladies," Henry heard a manly voice in the background. It must have been Grumpy. "We have a problem."

"Henry, I have to go," Regina said. "Remember that you can get through anything."

"Mom, I understand why you did everything you did! I do."

Regina paused and stared teary-eyed at him. Henry assumed that she wished that she could come to get him. It had to be hard for her knowing that everything she built was destroyed. She probably was dealing with the lost of Robinhood. Henry wished that he could hug her to make her feel better. Then, his mom did something that made Henry think that he would never see him again. She began crying, choking back tears.

"I love you, Henry," she said as she turned away from him, showing him her back.

"Bye Henry," Snow called.

No! This could not be the last time he talked to her. He immediately began reverting back to a child and started calling her name.

"Mom! Mom! Mom! Mom! I love you. Mom!"

The image began going static, fading slowly as Henry allowed tears to drip down his face. He felt Violet place an arm around him. How could he be strong when his whole world was being stolen from him? He was still a kid after all and he needed his family.

As he stifled his tears, he heard voices coming from the projection. He remained silent as he listened to the conversation.

"How many are there?" he heard Regina ask.

"It's about ten," Grumpy answered.

"And is Emma with them?" Snow asked.

"Yup. It's the end ladies."

"Not if I can help it," Regina said with a scowl.

"We will make out it out alive," Snow said.

"And if not, we are killing all of those bastards in the process," Regina mentioned.

"I'm with you sister," Grumpy agreed.

The transmission died down and all Henry could do was fall to his knees. Violet sat down next to him, who was silently crying.

Henry was not sure what he was crying over or whom he was mourning for. Was it the confirmation that Hook destroyed the town, the announcement of Charming's death, the pain of seeing his mother or perhaps the hope of rescue?

The only thing Henry could compare this loss to was when Neil died. This was worse since he lost his whole family. He sobbed as he thought about the fact that Grandpa Charming was dead. He would never get another chance to ride in the passenger's seat of the Sheriff's car as his grandfather drove him around or he will never play video games with him on a Saturday morning again. The last time he saw him was right before Hook kidnapped him and it was hard knowing that he will never see again. He would never get a chance to say good-bye. Worse of all, he died feeling like a failure since he could not save Henry. Another tear ran down his face when he thought about Regina. As much as he wished that he could have his mother with him, a part of him knew that he will never see her again. There was something inside of him that knew that he would never hear his mother's or grandmother's voice again. He had more faith that Emma would make it out alive then Regina and Snow. Still, the chance that they could live and defeat Hook seemed small.

As the tears poured down Henry's face, something inside of him told him that he needed to stop crying. What if Hook came in and seen him crying? That would give Hook the satisfaction that he was breaking Henry down. It was already enough that Henry cried yesterday when he discovered that Hook had destroyed Storybrooke. The confirmation from his mom only made him sadder. Although he was glad that his mother had contacted him to let him know that his moms and grandmother was still alive, it did not restore too much hope in him. Who else would die in order to save him? The last thing Henry needed to do was to mourn over the loss of his town, his family and his innocence. He had to push his emotions away and think clearly to make sure that both Violet and he stayed alive.

He forced himself to stand up and take deep breaths. He used his sleeve to wipe away tears as Violet stood up, perhaps curious as to what Henry was doing. He looked at her, realizing that she was the only thing he needed. Although young teenagers needed their parents, both Emma and Neil proved that they could survive without them. Henry needed to adopt the mindset they had. Yes, there was a chance that he could be reunited with his surviving family members, but he could not count on them to rescue him.

He turned to the girl before him, wrapping his arms around her small waist, pulling her closer to initiate a warm embrace between the two young teens.

"Henry," she began. "Is it wrong that I have doubts?"

"About what?"

"About your mother saving us."

"No. I have doubts as well."

Violet's honesty comforted him and it was nice to have another person's opinion on the situation. Henry placed his hand on her shoulder, slowly gliding his fingertips down her tender flesh until he reached her hand. He held her hand as he gently swung their arms back and forth.

"I imagine that my father is no more," she said so softly that she could have been saying it to herself.

Henry's eyes widen when he realized that he had not thought about how Violet lost her family as well. They both were orphans now, stranded together on their assailant's ship as the world around them ceased to exist.

"I'm sorry for your lost," he replied.

She nodded.

As the two stared at each other, Henry realized that they were completely alone and that they were no longer in immediate danger. His attention turned to his growling belly. A small grin appeared on his face as he realized that they could leave the cabin.

"We should eat," he announced.

He led her out of the cabin. For the first time, Henry felt relieved to walk down the hallway and towards the main outer area. The two walked to the kitchen, opening cabins and scouting through edibles goodies through the mini fridge. Hook did not keep a lot of food on his ship but there were enough options for two starving teenagers to eat. Henry set his eyes on the mini fridge and was pleased to discover fresh apples, carrots oranges, grape jam, sliced cheese, and milk. Violet discovered corn chips in one of the cupboards, then peanut butter, one loaf of bread and two cans of tuna. The two worked together and started setting out the items they chose to eat on the fold-out table. As Henry made two peanut butter and jam sandwiches, Violet sliced apples and oranges. Henry took out two glasses and poured milk for in both cups. The two smiled and they started eating their lunch.

It had been nine days since Henry had lunch. He remembered that he went to Granny's and ordered a grilled cheese sandwich with tomato soup. If only he knew that the next time he would have lunch would be eight days later in his captor's ship. Although Henry could pinpoint how unfortunate his situation was, he could not help admitting that it was nice sitting across from Violet. The meal did not change the fact that they had lost loved ones but it helped ease the pain from the reality of the situation. Henry could not believe how hungry he was. After Hook had starved him for two days, he had only given him tea and rum to drink. This was his first real meal in days and he was very happy to eat. He went back over to the cupboard, pulling out the bag of corn chips and bringing them towards the table. He poured chips on his plate and offered some to Violet, who took a few chips.

"I fear that he will be quite angry at us when he returns," Violet whispered as she bit into an apple slice.

Henry nodded and replied, "I won't let him hurt you."

Violet stared at him and placed a hand over his.

"You are the only thing I have left," she said. "I cannot lose you. Do you remember when you asked to court me?"

The memory of Violet rejecting him replayed in his head. It hurt knowing that Emma ripped out her heart and forced her to deny his request. He had forgiven his mother for that past transgression after realizing that Emma made a decision that she thought was best.

"Yeah," Henry answered.

"My answer has changed. I do want to court you."

"That's great ... I mean, I'm glad that we're dating now," he said, stumbling upon his words.

There was a warm, fuzzy feeling that wrapped around Henry's being as he looked at his new girlfriend. It was nice knowing that he had someone that belonged to him and that he belonged to someone as well. He was not sure how their new relationship would develop while being held captive in the Jolly Roger. It was not like they could go on dates to Granny's or stroll through the park - those two things no longer existed anyway. The technicalities were not important. This was an important step for Henry since it solidified his decision to protect Violet with his life. It also gave him a new motivation to defeat Hook. Now he knew that Violet and he could share a life together.

After the two finished their lunch, Henry held Violet's hand as they strolled back to his cabin. They passed other rooms, which were locked, unfortunately, before they stood in front of Henry's room.

The simplicity of the moment, the stillness of the waves, the quietness in the ship and the absence of Hook, made Henry wish that this moment would not end. For a second, he could forget that his home town was destroyed and that his family was either died or dying. He turned to Violet, cupping her face, feeling the warmness of his skin under his pale fingers, gently stroking her cheek as he stared into those big, beautiful brown eyes. She was perfect in every way from the way her dark hair framed her face to the way her eyes brightened when she smiled. Best of all, she was Henry's girl. His heartbeat sped up as he questioned if he should kiss her. This would be his first kiss. There were many techniques when it came to giving someone a great first kiss and Henry was sure he was not aware of any of them. Violet, a Camelot maiden, may not have been receptive to receiving a kiss. He did not want to come across too strong and scare her off. Should he ask her? Would that have ruined the mood? He looked at Violet, unsure of what to do next, as he continued stroking her cheeks. She did not seem to have a problem with that. What if that was all she was comfortable with?

"Can I kiss you?" he asked, feeling ashamed the second that the words left his lips.

Violet reached up, bringing her face closer to his, signaling to Henry to do the same. Their lips pressed against each other for a few seconds. Henry beamed as he thought about how nice it was to kiss his girlfriend, to feel her soft lips against his. They rested their foreheads against each other as they stared into each other eyes.

"I am fond of you," she said with a smile.

The two walked into Henry's cabin, spending the rest of the afternoon talking until they fell asleep on Henry's bed.


	7. Chapter 7

Henry laid in his bed, staring at the ceiling as he thought about what he needed to do next. Violet was asleep next to him with her head on his chest. He had an arm around her and he gently stroked her shoulder as he thought about everything his mothers and grandmother told him. There were still people left alive and Henry had to save them. In order to do that, he had to persuade Hook. Unfortunately, Henry did not have a lot of bargaining power. The one thing he did know was that all villains wanted the same three things: power, revenge, and companionship. They did not want to rule the world alone. And Henry knew exactly what to tell Hook. Even if Henry was only able to save a few people, the one thing Henry did not want to be was powerless. He felt so powerless after talking to his mother. Although he had the power to use the Author's Pen, he didn't have access to it. The only way he could was if he proposed a new deal to Hook.

When Hook barged into Henry's cabin, he looked sweaty and out of breath as if he was fighting. Regina must have conjured a distraction in order to talk to Henry. Hook did a double take of Henry and Violet laying in the bed together and smiled. The Savior's son expected some offhanded or cruel comment by Hook but he didn't seem like he was in the mood for that. The boy sat up, making his girlfriend wake up in the process.

"Reunion's over," Hook announced before eying the two teens again. He chuckled as he playfully shook his head. "Shiver me timbers! You lads must have had a grand old time."

"Where were you?" Henry asked as he stood up and walked over to his kidnapper. He could feel Violet's presence behind him.

He knew that Hook would not tell him the answer he was looking for. However, this was a power move. Henry was taking control of the situation and Hook had to realize this.

"Not hurting you," Hook snapped. "That's for damn sure."

Henry guessed that the pirate did not like that Henry was becoming less afraid of him.

"And you won't."

Hook raised his eyebrows and took a step closer to Henry.

"You testing me boy?"

"You kept your promise. You didn't hurt us."

"What's your point?"

Hook became increasingly defensive as if he was afraid that he would have to prove how evil he was to Henry. Henry was not completely afraid of his captor's wrath anymore since he knew that even his girlfriend's life was no longer at state. Hook didn't kill any children and Henry assumed that he didn't plan to kill any kids from the beginning. He wished he would have realized that sooner. It was too late for regrets. It was time for answers.

"What do you want with me? Why am I still alive?"

"What do you think?

"It will get lonely after you killed everyone."

Hook chuckled as if the thought of him being lonely was ridiculous. He cocked his head towards the ceiling and then chuckled again. He must have been contemplating on what he should say next.

"After this is over," he began. "I need someone over this town. This town needs a leader who would serve my will."

Henry raised his eyebrows and thought about how Snow mentioned that all the children were still alive. Hook killed off all the older people so they would not rebel under his authority. The children would be forced to and persuaded to obey Hook. This was his narcissistic plan from the beginning. To have his own kingdom to rule over.

"There's no town if everyone is dead," Henry countered.

He refused to let Hook know that he spoke with his mother.

"All right then," Hook said as he looked Henry in the eye. "How about we make a deal?"

"I'm listening."

"You can save all the children. Write it down in your book. As long as you agree to be my dark prince. I let you think about it."

Henry was grateful that Hook exited the room and let his girlfriend stay with him. The two stood in silence as they listened to Hook's boots clicking against the hardwood floors of the boat, waiting patiently for the sound to stop. It was immediately followed by the sound of the pirate opening his cabinet, perhaps fetching another bottle of liquor. Henry's eyes traveled down to the broken bottle on the floor as he hoped that Hook did not realize that Henry weaponized one of his beers. The boy walked over to the bottle, picked it up as he stared at the sharp edges on the broken spot. He knew he should not keep something like this but he liked the idea of having a weapon. Still, it was best not to tempt Hook more than he already did. Dark Hook may not kill him or Violet but there was still a lot that Hook could do hurt them. He once again tossed another weapon-like object through the window and listened as the object landed with a small splash.

"That could have served us well," Violet whispered as she left her spot in the center of the room and came closer to Henry.

"It's too much of a risk," he whispered back.

"Challenging him is not?"

Henry turned to her, smiling as he grabbed her hand.

"Talking back is less risky than storing a weapon. Don't worry, Violet. I'll protect you. I have a plan."

She nodded. Her natural innocence and the frailness of her body made her appear vulnerable. Henry wondered what Hook had done to her while he kidnapped her and held her hostage. Violet was not the type of girl to verbalize her feelings or share painful memories. The sadness and dullness behind her eyes contradicted the brave smile she plastered on her face. There was nothing he could do to get her to admit what happened. The only thing he could do was protect her from being hurt, which is why he tried reassuring her that he would not let anything happen to her.

"I will protect you as well," she added which brought a smile to Henry's face. She grabbed his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

That was enough to give the poor boy hope that Violet and he will make it out alive.

* * *

_Henry choked on smoke as he tried concealing his nose and his mouth with the thin material of his shirt. His head was lowered as he carefully tiptoed around the charred parts of the pavement. Violet had told him that is was too dangerous to visit the ruins of Storybrooke but Henry needed to see the remains of the town for himself. He knew he should have waited until the smoke cleared or at least tried finding a mask to protect his face. That required time that he did not have. There could be people still alive that needed rescuing. After promising his dying mother that he'll protect what's left of the city, he intended to keep that promise._

_It was hard knowing that another one of his family members died. The images of her eyes, the way they became empty and dull as her lifeless body sunk into the ocean, haunted his memory. He knew he would never forget the moment when he watched one of his mothers die. This was why it was really important for Henry to visit Storybrooke now. He needed to know if his other mother was still alive. A part of him knew she was powerful enough to withstand what Hook did to her and the other part knew she had already accepted death when she saved Henry and Violet from Hook's massive destruction._

_As he walked through the town, coughing and struggling to breathe, he looked up at what used to be the library. The building was now black, charred from the smoke. The clock tower on the top of the library must have fallen through when the flames broke down the roof. The doorway was still standing along with the main four walls of the building. He couldn't help but imagine that Belle was in there. He walked through the library's entrance, it was dark except for the parts where the sun shined through the cracks in the wall. Ashes fell on him as he shuffled through bits of broken concrete and paper._

_"Belle!" he yelled as he pushed past a desk._

_A foul smell hit his nose as he headed towards the back of the building. His eyes watered and he started choking from the intensity of the stench. He coughed into his shirt, struggling to find clean air to inhale. Turning to leave, he stumbled over a pile books, falling face first onto the floor, scratching his face on a piece of concrete. The pain was excruciating and he felt blood ooze from his cut. He tried pushing himself up, only to slice his hand on something sharp. He grunted in pain, forcing himself to stand up. He quickly glanced around, when he saw her. He was sure it was her. Although her brown hair was covering her face, he recognized her outfit. Henry took a step closer then took a step back when he realized where the smell was coming from. She didn't look burnt so she must have suffocated from the smoke. A tear dripped down his face while he left her body to rot in the library. There was nothing he could do to save her._

_"Heeennnrrryyy," a hushed male voice called out._

_He turned, feeling confused and dazed. Who was calling him? It was not Belle. She was dead._

_"Who's there?" Henry called back as his eyes searched the room for a body._

_"Rump..." the voice trailed off and was proceeded with coughs._

_Henry detected the direction his grandfather was in and ran over to him. He found him, buried under a bookcase. The young boy tried pulling back the shelf but he was not strong enough. He tried again, only to be interrupted by Gold._

_"It's no use boy," Rumpel whispered. "Come closer."_

_Henry kneeled, lowering himself closer to the elder._

_"Kill him," he urged._

_"Hook?" Henry asked._

_"You have to."_

_"But that's murder."_

_"No, it's justice. I know you were taught that sparing people lives was right but it's not. That's cowardice. Doing the right thing involves choosing what others consider too hard. That bastard needs to die for all the lives he took."_

_"I can't."_

_"You can. Avenge your family. Avenge Belle. Avenge me. I once was willing to give up my life to save you and this town. You need to ..."_

_Henry's eyes widened as Rumpel trailed off. The elder's eyes slowly faded as tears dripped down the younger male's face._

_"Rumpel," he called out. "Please don't go."_

_He was already gone._

_"I can't kill him!" he cried out. "I can't! I can't! I can't! I -"_

"Can't!" Henry yelled as he opened his eyes, staring at the wooden walls of his cabin.

He sat up, his heart pounding hard in his chest as he realized that he had just woken up from one nightmare and awaken in another. When he was younger, it was easy for him to brush off nightmares because he knew that it was simply a dream. He was no longer allowed that luxury. This was more than just a nightmare where his brain conjured a worst-case scenario situation. This was his reality. Storybrooke had been destroyed for two days. It was very likely that Rumpel could very well be alive, trapped in the library as he waited for death to overtake him.

What if the nightmare was not just a dream? What if it was a vision or if Rumpel was actually communicating with him through dreams? It was very likely that his grandfather would give Henry an order on his deathbed. This scared Henry because it would feel wrong to deny Rumpel of his last desire. Yet, there was no way Henry could take someone's life. As angry as he was with Hook, he could not imagine himself going through with it. He had every right to wish death upon Hook and he knew that it would be fair to end Hook since he killed his family. Having the desire was one thing but actually doing it was something that Henry was not ready to do. Yes, he no longer wanted to keep many of the Charming family values but he was not sure what would happen to him if could actually do it. If he could actually kill Hook. Would he become evil like how Regina became the Evil Queen after she lost her first love? He would never want to be evil.

As Henry contemplated, he heard Hook's footsteps approaching his door. Within a few seconds, his family's murderer was standing before him. He appeared happier than he did the last night when he made Violet go back into her cabin for the night. Although Henry was not surprised that Hook separated them again, he still did not like seeing his captor take his girlfriend away from him. If Violet had spent the night in Henry's cabin, he could have told her about the dream instead of keeping all his thoughts bottled up. He wondered if she would want him to kill Hook especially since she wanted Henry to keep the broken bottle as a self-defense weapon. All he could do was hope that Hook would bring her back into the room.

"Morning Henry," Hook said as he pulled out his flask. "Want a sip?"

"No," Henry quickly said, which seemed to disappoint to English man. "I want to talk about the deal."

Hook exasperated and shook his head as if Henry was the one being rude to him. Did he really expect to have a pleasant conversation with him after murdering his family and destroying his town? Henry was willing to cooperate but he was never going to pretend that the two had a great relationship. Maybe it would be better if Hook was dead. He would never expect Henry to kill him. Then, Violet and he could be free from him and go live in Neil's New York apartment.

"You know," Hook began as he placed his flask back into his pocket. Henry raised his eyebrows, knowing that Hook was going to say something he shouldn't. "You could have Violet. I'll tell you what to do and then you can go into her cabin and become a man."

There were so many things that Henry wanted to say yet he realized that Hook wanted to rile him up so that Henry would not discuss the deal further.

"Pass," Henry stated which received a surprised look from the pirate.

"Why?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. He seemed genuinely curious. "Thought females were your thing?"

"I just want to make the deal," Henry replied.

Hook sighed and shook his head again as if he was disappointed in Henry.

"Fine," he said as he walked over to Henry's bed, which made Henry instinctively move closer to the wall, giving the murderer room to sit on the bed. Hook crossed his legs, took out his flask and took a long pull of his rum.

"But with exceptions," Henry clarified. This was important to Henry especially since this could give him more information about who's left in Storybrooke. "I will be your dark prince if you stop hurting, destroying and killing Storybrooke and the people that are still alive there."

Hook grinned, chuckling to himself before saying, "No deal."

"But -"

"Do you really think your family is still alive?"

Henry knew for a fact that his moms, Snow and Grumpy was still alive. If he could save them, that would be a major victory in Henry's book.

"They can get through anything," he said, feeling like his old hopeful self.

Henry knew that Hook expected him to say this. If he was going to defeat Hook, he had to make Hook believe that Henry was entirely good and hopeful. This would make Hook not perceive Henry as a threat, which would be an advantage for the adolescent.

"Even the destruction of light magic?" Hook pointed out.

"My grandparents don't need magic."

That was true. Both Snow and David disdained magic and felt like all magic had the potential to corrupt a person. He remembered when they were disappointed when Emma started using magic. Henry previously shared the same stance with his grandparents since he felt that magic was too powerful for people to possess. After being kidnapped by Hook, he wished that he would have agreed to take magic lessons. If he was able to be reunited with Regina, he'll definitely ask her to teach him, even if it was basic safety spells.

"Do you think that they can fight multiple dark ones without it?" Hook challenged.

"How many dark ones are there?" Henry asked.

"I revived all the dark ones from the beginning of time," he boasted.

Henry thought about the moment during his conversation with Regina's projection when he heard Grumpy tell Regina and Snow that there were "ten of them" coming to fight them. They must have been referring to the dark ones. His family was fighting dark ones and they were able to live through most of the battles. This also would explain how Hook could cause so much destruction to Storybrooke within nine days. Now, this was more complicated then Henry thought. Hook was not the only one that needed to die, all the dark ones (with the exception of Emma) needed to be killed as well. Henry remembered that his mother told him that he was safer with Hook. Maybe he actually was. Hook did make Henry write that he was the only dark one that he could hurt him. It seemed like Dark Hook was protecting Henry from all the other demons he unleashed. The Savior's son found that fact interesting.

"New deal," Henry announced. "I will be your dark prince if you keep the rest of the dark ones from hurting anyone else."

"You really think that your family is still alive?" Hook asked again.

"Yes."

"You're wrong, boy."

The younger boy stared into his captor's eyes, searching for answers to questions that he did not start thinking yet. There was something that Henry was not understanding. He knew that Hook was using the Dark Ones to eliminate threats in Storybrooke. He knew that he wanted to be a king to the town. He knew that he wanted Henry to be a part of his new government. He knew that he was using Violet as a way to keep Henry in line. This was about revenge and power - typical villain stuff. Yet, something else was going on. He studied the pirate, hoping that he could pick up a clue from the older male's body language. What question did Henry forget to ask? It had to be something obvious that he was overlooking. The best thing for the boy to do was to start asking questions.

"You want me to be lonely," Henry stated. "Is that why you're taking away my family?"

The pirate crossed his arms, leaned forward and stared at the Savior's son for a long second. His face began to soften, he unfolded his arms and sighed. He took another long pull of his rum while he appeared to contemplate on his answer to his captive.

"You can always start a new family with the little Camelot girl," he finally replied with a hushed voice. "Think of it as the new royal family."

Henry lowered his head as he wondered if Hook was serious. If he was, what would that mean? Was that the real reason that he kidnapped Violet? Did he really expect two young teenagers to actually...? What if they did not want to? What would Dark Hook do then? The boy's shoulder hunched as his hands started trembling. The man in front of him would probably threaten and force Violet and Henry to have a baby. That was a dark thought. Henry could never hurt Violet and he would rather die than to be forced to do something like that. Of course, Hook would not kill Henry for refusing. He would threaten to kill Violet which would give Henry no choice but to obey Hook, causing him to lose his innocence and betray Violet in a way he never thought of hurting anyone. This topic was too upsetting to think about. He had to get both him and Violet away from Hook before Hook pushed them to do something they were not even ready for.

"Why do you want me and my family to suffer?" Henry asked. "What happened to you?"

Without skipping a beat, Hook clenched his jaw, lowered his eyebrow and said, "Your damn mother."

Henry started to say, "When are you going to see that it is the darkness that is making you do this," but he did not. This type of hatred and anger could not have just came from exposure to dark magic. Hook must have already felt this way. Regina used to say, "Once a villain, always a villain." Although that was not true for his mother, it had to be true for Hook. He must have killed and plumaged during his years as a pirate. This bloodlust perhaps never left him. The darkness that overtook the Dark Ones must not have made them evil, it just removed the possessed individual's inhibitions. For his grandfather, it made him brave, powerful and able to make hard decisions without fear and love holding him back. For Emma, it made her an anti-hero, someone who toed the line between good and evil to accomplish a goal. For Hook, it made him a serial killer that kidnapped underage children, resurrected devils and commanded them to destroy a town. Although Henry had thought about the mechanics of the Dark Ones for a while, he was becoming more assured that his theory was correct.

What Henry needed to focus on was asking the obvious question. Yes, it was clear that Hook hated Emma because she turned him into the Dark Hook. There had to be another reason why he despised her and he must have a plan to get revenge on as her as well.

"Why do you hate my mom so much?" Henry asked, then quickly added before Hook opened his mouth, "It's not just because she turned you into a Dark One."

Hook chuckled and shook his head.

"That woman," he said, mostly to himself. He looked down and continued to shake his head. "She held me back for so long. Always pushing her will on me. Making me want to bow to her. Making me so submissive onto her. Her subtle manipulation and grooming. Her quiet goal of emasculating me. She's going to get what she deserves. She wants to be this high and mighty Savior. Well, she can be blamed for destroying everything she swore to protect."

"No, you didn't," Henry gasped as he felt his eyes begin to water.

Henry's eyes widened as he thought about how he gave Hook the ability to control all the Dark Ones, including Emma. It was Henry that forced his own mother to do something she never wanted to do. He imagined that she resisted as much as she could. She had to fight Hook. He must have hurt her. He must have done something that made her go against her morals. Henry thought back to his conversation with Regina's projection. She would not have mentioned that Emma was still alive if she was solely destroying the town with the Dark Ones. She must have been trying to help the heroes as much as she could. That still did not ease the pain of killing the people that she was born to protect.

"Why did you make her?" Henry whispered.

"Say it," Hook commanded as he leaned closer to the boy. He clenched his teeth as his eyes darkened. "I want to hear you say what that bitch did."

"You made her destroy Storybrooke," he acknowledged as tears dripped down his face.

Henry hated this. He was supposed to be showing Hook that he was not going to fall for his emotional manipulation. This was too painful for Henry to ignore. The man before him ruined his life, his mother's life and the life of many others. Yet, he was allowed to smile and chuckle and gulp down rum as if everything was okay. All Henry could do was think about what his grandfather told him in his dream. Hook needed to die and Henry deserved to be the one that killed him. The thought of knowing that Emma had to kill people made Henry enraged.

"Well, now you are giving her too much credit," Hook said as he clapped his hands together. "She did play a huge role. It was either that or her poor son would suffer."

Henry started choking back sobs as he could no longer control his emotions. He would have preferred if Hook slapped him or stabbed him in the eye with his hook. The feeling of knowing his mother was killing everything she loved to protect Henry made him upset. What if Henry had actually died while refusing Hook's orders? It was awful knowing that he was willing to die while Emma was taking the lives of the people she cared about just to keep him safe. He felt guilty and ashamed for being willing to risk his life to preserve goodness. He thought back to when Regina told Henry that he was safer with Hook. How did she know this? Did Hook tell Emma that he never planned on injuring Henry after she participated in the destruction of the town? Henry did not have the answer to that question. All he could think about was how Hook misled Emma just like Hook made Henry think that Violet's and his life was in danger.

"You lied to her!" he shouted between heaving. "You made her kill her own people and you didn't even plan on killing me!"

Hook chuckled. Henry wanted him to die just from seeing him laugh. How was this funny?

"Then, she should have called my bluff."

"How could you do this to her? Did you ever love her?"

"Love? You want to preach to me about love when you can't even forgive the woman who gave birth to you?"

"I have."

"Aren't you angry that she tried to use the person you love to manipulate you? That's what she did to me. She's more of a villain than me and your grandfather will ever be!"

"Stop it! Stop it!"

"She's a thief, a liar, a runway, a criminal-"

Henry started pounding his fist against the wooden walls while he yelled, "Stop talking about my mom!"

"Face it laddy, she may have given birth to you but she was never your mother."

Henry was beginning to feel dizzy. The room began spinning as Henry struggled to stop his tears from dripping down his cheek. His heart was pounding so hard that his chest was hurting. He wondered if Violet heard what was going on. She wished she was here to comfort him. Then again, he was glad she did not see him like this. He had to be brave for her. He needed to calm himself down and figure out why Hook was trying to make him upset. He tried inhaling and exhaling but it made him feel like he was struggling to breathe.

"Why are you saying this?" he asked as he rubbed his eyes.

"Because what mother gives up her child. What mother rips a child's heart out? Both Rumpel and Regina would not have done that when they were villains."

"She was doing what she thought was best!"

"Be honest, lad. Do you even love Emma?"

"I do!"

"No, you don't. Tell me, which mother have you thought about the most. Which mother do you miss the most? If I gave you a choice to save one of your mothers, you know which one you would choose."

Henry said nothing.

Hook chuckled. He nodded his head as if he was considering the idea he just proposed. "I'll do just that. Pick which mother you would want to live. That can be a part of the deal. You'll be the dark one and one of your mothers gets to live. I'll give you until tomorrow night to think about it. I'll hurry if I were you. She probably does not have that much time left."

Hook stood up, flashing Henry one of his signature smiles before strutting out of Henry's cabin. It was clear to both males that Hook was winning. In fact, it was safe to say that he had won. There was nothing that Henry could do to reverse all the damage that Hook had done. The only thing anyone could do was kill Hook as a way to avenge all the people he hurt.

As he laid his head back on his pillow, he wondered about Hook's new offer to him. Was this a trick? Was he actually going to give Henry a chance to save his mother? If so, which one would he save? Regina had been his mother his whole life. She raised him most of his life. While Emma was the mother whose blood ran through his veins. She had been in his life for three years and she even raised him for a year in New York after Pan destroyed the spell that created Storybrooke. There was no way that he could make a choice like that. Then, he remembered what dream Rumpelstiltskin told him about making the hard decision. This could be the only way he saved his mother. If he saved Emma, she would still be under the control of the Dark Ones. If he chose Regina over her, then Hook may use this to prove a point to Henry that he did not care enough about Emma.

He could not make this decision without talking to Violet first. He needed to express all the emotions that he was trying to contain so he can make the best choice. Henry felt that he had two options. He should either deny saving both mothers since this was probably a ruse devised just to hurt Henry. The second option was difficult to think about since Hook would probably immediately kill the mother he did not choose. Although he wanted to speak to Violet before he chose which one, he already knew which mother he was picked. The quickness of this decision scared him because it was clear what mother he loved more. He would rather believe the lie that he loved them equally than to admit that he had a favorite mother.

 

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Thank you for reading my story. Please favorite, follow and review since it encourages me to continue writing. Feel free to follow me Discreet Kitty on Tumblr and @DiscreetKitty96 for story updates and request.


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